


No Future

by caligulasaquarium5



Category: A Hat in Time (Video Game)
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Illustrations, Time Travel, Violence, mostly in the later chapters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-30
Updated: 2020-07-05
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:08:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 30,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24993625
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/caligulasaquarium5/pseuds/caligulasaquarium5
Summary: Everything has a past, and a future. Some futures much more desirable than others. Some futures unable to be changed, some that change at the slightest touch. The slightest slip of the hand. The slightest crack of a time piece.Sometimes, the past is thrown forward into a future. And a new one is created.
Relationships: Hat Kid & Snatcher (A Hat in Time), Hat Kid & The Prince (A Hat in Time)
Comments: 38
Kudos: 119





	1. Fast Forward

**Author's Note:**

> hey guys!! get ready for some angst!!!
> 
> ive already got this whole fic written out, and ill be uploading a new chapter each day until all 7 chapters are up. i know this first one is short, but they get progressively longer as they go
> 
> anyways, i hope you enjoy reading!

It was cold. The snow drifted down slowly, endlessly, blanketing the clearing in a perpetual white. The footprints leading back to the two headless statues were quickly covered, the stairs slick with ice. Something had blown a torrent of snow up against the front doors, or someone had placed it there purposefully. Which of the two wasn't clear. The inside of the manor was dark, but compared to the darkness of the clearing, the windows seemed to glow with an unearthly light, watching for any signs of movement. The manor itself loomed over the surrounding area, pillars of sharp ice jutting out from it in every direction, as if to ward off any poor soul that dared to come near. With how menacing it looked, it was doubtful anyone would ever come near this place.

But of course, everything has a past. And a future.

It was the crown jewel of Subcon Kingdom. The manor belonging to Princess Vanessa was the largest building among a sea of small, quaint little houses, and was almost always open to visitors, the warm and comforting heart of the kingdom.

Only fitting that this cheerful building was home to the two most cheerful people in the village, Princess Vanessa and her Prince Luke.

The ever flowing sea of visitors, eager to give gifts to the royalty and chat in the lounge and try the princess's delicious cookie recipe, was just calming down for the night as a rainstorm moved in, and Prince Luke was exhausted. Not in the bad way, oh no, in a very delightful way that made him excited for what joy tomorrow would bring. But of course, he did desire a bit of time to himself and his wife. Now that the sun was setting and the rain was falling, outdoor shops were closing up, parents were gently shooing their children back inside for dinner, and Subcon Kingdom was settling down for bed. It made Luke very happy, both to see the bustling streets by day, and to watch each light in each house switch off one by one as the moon rose in the sky. It was a peaceful feeling, to think of his subjects sleeping soundly and comfortably, to think that he had a part in securing their comfort. It was the same feeling one would get from a cat deciding to sleep on their lap. A feeling of trust, and a strong desire to protect that trust. And the prince would rather die than give up that feeling.

Prince Luke smiled as he stepped away from the rain soaked bedroom window, removing his crown as thunder boomed in the distance and placing it on the bedside table, next to one of his law textbooks. He had recently decided to finally pursue his dream of becoming a lawyer, much to Vanessa's chagrin.

_"A lawyer prince? Doesn't that seem a bit...silly, my dear? There is hardly any crime in Subcon, after all..."_

Luke frowned, shaking the thoughts from his head as he got changed for bed. She would come around eventually, she usually did with this sort of thing. Even though Subcon's crime rate was very low compared to others, he wanted to do his best to help innocent people from being unfairly punished. Hand in hand with the crime rate, there weren't many properly trained lawyers either, and he would be the best of the best! He would solve cases, help his clients, he would even write contracts for neighboring kingdoms! It was his dream, and soon Vanessa would see how serious he was.

A faint crash and a voice from upstairs shook him from his daydream. He whipped around, eyes wide. Vanessa was downstairs, he could still hear her humming as she cleaned up the kitchen. Was one of the children still in the house?

The thrum of rain echoed through the hall as he rushed out of his bedroom and up to the third floor, listening carefully. He could still hear the voice, the voice of a young girl, and it was still above him. How had a stray child gotten all the way up to the attic without himself or Vanessa noticing?

More quietly now, he began up the stairs, and stopped, listening to the voice.

"...Can't believe…..time pieces…….dropped……."

Luke blinked. Time pieces? What was this girl talking about?

He swallowed a strange feeling of apprehension building in his throat, and opened the attic doors.

The girl stopped mid sentence and stared back at him, eyes blown wide with shock. Seemed like she didn't expect to be found. She didn't look like anyone the prince had ever seen in the kingdom, he definitely would have seen a girl with a mustache around. Perhaps she was lost and had come in to avoid the storm?

Before Luke could even speak, the girl grabbed one of the hourglasses she had dropped off of the ground and threw it back down. The shattering glass seemed to freeze in midair, and when the prince blinked, it and the girl had vanished. The only evidence that he hadn't imagined the whole thing was a single hourglass the girl had left behind.

He blinked and shook his head, trying to make sense of what he had just seen. That girl was definitely a magic user like himself and Vanessa, but that wasn't any kind of magic he'd seen before. He would have thought she had used an invisibility spell if that hourglass hadn't disappeared as well, and if he had heard any signs that she was still in the room. Had she somehow teleported?

"Dearest? Is everything alright up there?"

Vanessa's call shook him from his wondering, though no reply came, and he leaned down, picking up the strange hourglass. The sands inside glowed a bright white, and he felt a strange sensation upon holding it in his hand, a stark familiarity that wasn't due for many years. A Time Piece, was it called? Enamored, he brought the time piece up to his face, peering inside as the sands flowed slowly to the bottom. Something buzzed in the back of his mind, and he felt himself concentrating, trying to see what the object was showing him. A flash of lightning lit up the room around him.

**_Cold…_ **

"Luke?"

He jumped about three feet in the air and stumbled around, sighing in relief when he saw Vanessa standing in the doorway. "Vanny...lord, you scared the daylights out of me!"

She frowned, running a hand through her hair where her crown would be. "Are you alright, dear? I heard you running up to the attic...what is that?"

Luke looked down at the time piece in his hand, scratching at a sudden itch in his upper arm. "It looks like some sort of magical object. I heard someone in the attic, saying something about "time pieces", and when I opened the door a small girl with a mustache was standing there with more of these in her arms. Before I could do anything, she smashed one of them and disappeared, with no smoke or tricks or anything! I thought I had been seeing things at first but...she left this behind."

Vanessa looked doubtful at first, but her face softened into a confused look as she approached, taking his discovery and looking it over. "How odd...is this one of those time pieces she was speaking of?"

"It surely seems like it. What shall we do with it, my princess?"

"Hmm...perhaps we should keep it in the cellar and decide what to do in the morning."

Luke frowned, wincing at a closer crack of thunder from outside. "Are you sure? We'd have to walk through the rain to the back door since the inside doors are still jammed…"

Vanessa nodded briskly, taking his hand. "I'm sure no one will find it down there. Now come, let's go so we can get to bed sooner."

Luke didn't have much of a say as he was dragged from the attic, frowning a bit. Why was she so keen on keeping it in the cellar? Then again, he shouldn't question her, she knew what she was doing, right?

Once they had reached the first floor, Vanessa took his coat, draping it over his shoulders. She pulled her own on as he did the same, grabbing his boots and lacing them up. He didn't want to slip and fall on the wet pavement, now did he?

He looked up to see her taking his umbrella and opening it, struggling a bit to carry both it and the time piece. "Here, Vanny, if you're going to hold the umbrella, let me carry the time piece for you."

She paused, then nodded, hesitantly handing him the hourglass. He smiled and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, to which she smiled in return and leaned against him. He hated seeing her upset, but they could talk about whatever was bothering her once they were back inside.

He opened the doors, and they both stepped out into the rain.

It was already dark out and there was a chilling breeze whipping through the air, as if nature were trying to push them back inside. Luke shivered and huddled closer to Vanessa, starting down the stairs.

"Let's hurry so that we don't- _AH!!!"_

He cried out as his foot slipped on the third step, nearly dropping the time piece before Vanessa caught him by the arm. "Luke!! Are you alright?!"

He quickly scrambled to his feet, holding in a breath before letting it out slowly. "I'm...I'm ok. Let's hurry."

She nodded, helping him descend the stairs more carefully this time. They reached the bottom safely and started down the path towards the back of the manor, rain thrumming at the umbrella. The prince almost walked into that rain before he realized Vanessa had stopped in her tracks. He turned to see her standing, still as a board, staring up at the manor, a flash of lightning illuminating her face. Her eyes swirled with emotion, though he couldn't identify any of them. "...Vanny?"

"I...I'm alright. I just-"

The blast of thunder drowned out anything else she had to say. It was so loud and sudden that both of them jumped, Vanessa clinging to the umbrella and Luke grabbing onto her.

As the time piece flew from his hands.

Perhaps it was the effects of the object itself, but time seemed to slow down as Luke's eyes caught the falling time piece. Both he and Vanessa reached out to catch it, their hands brushing together. Each grain of the sand inside flew toward the upper edge of the glass as it fell, spinning towards the rain soaked path. Luke thought back to before, when he'd looked into the hourglass, about what he'd seen.

Cold. That was the only way he could describe it.

The time piece broke in half, and a blinding white light came spilling from inside.

...And it was cold.


	2. New Friends

As Prince Luke pitched forward, he closed his eyes, expecting his face to hit the stone path. This was it, this was how he died.

Instead, the crunch and chill of soft snow filled his senses. He opened his eyes and blinked, lifting his face from the ground and wiping the snow from his cheek. How...had the weather changed so quickly? The rain was gone, replaced by a gentle snow that sent shivers down his spine. He looked up at the sky, darkened with clouds, then back down in front of him. The two halves of the time piece were still there, though a lot of the glass was missing, as well as all of the sand inside.

A groan beside him pierced the quiet air and he looked over to see Vanessa getting up as well, quickly moving to help her up. "Vanny, are you ok?! Are you hurt?"

"I'm alright...you?"

"A little cold, but ok."

"Where...are we?"

Luke looked up in front of him, then to the left and right. All he could see was ice. There was a glacial wall, impossibly high, in the place of all the houses, the only low spot leading towards the bridge to Subcon Forest. Or at least, he assumed it did, if they were in the same place at all.

"All this ice...where did it come from?" Vanessa drew in a shaky breath. "Where is the rest of the kingdom?"

Something burned in Luke's chest. A searing, roiling, uneasy feeling of pure dread. Behind him.

He turned around.

  
  


"...V-Vanny…"

  


"...I don't think there _is_ a kingdom anymore…"

Both of them went completely silent, the only sound being the howling breeze around them. Vanessa slowly wrapped her fingers around Luke's arm, squeezing it.

"...Wh...what...happened? The manor…"

"I think...I think that time piece took us into the future." Luke bit his lip, eyes darting carefully over the sharp spikes of ice as if one look would cut him. "But that means…"

"Subcon is going to freeze over?!"

Luke turned to the princess, whose hands were clasped in front of her mouth, crystals of ice beginning to form at the edge of her nightgown. For a moment, his mind made a connection, but he quickly shook the thought from his head. That was impossible, both of them knew Vanessa's ice magic wasn't strong enough to wipe out an entire kingdom like this. Something else must have happened.

He held her face in both hands, brushing the hair from her eyes soothingly. "My princess, please...we don't know how far into the future we were thrown, perhaps this happens many centuries after our rule has come and gone. Perhaps the kingdom has been relocated, and the cold simply moved in. There's no reason to fret until we know for sure."

She swallowed, holding his wrists tightly, then nodded, her grip loosening. Luke looked down, sighing in relief when he saw the ice receding from her gown. "There you go, dear...no need to worry when there's nothing to worry about."

He looked back up at the frozen manor, swallowing roughly as he leaned down and picked up the now closed umbrella. There were lights on inside...was someone living in it?

"Perhaps there is someone living there now who could help us! I say we go up there and ask for their assistance, do you agree?"

She nodded, never letting go of his hand as they both walked toward the front doors. Nearly to the stairs, they both stopped in their tracks when they noticed the statues out front, their heads broken off and missing.

"Luke...those are the statues mother put out front...they're still here?" Vanessa hummed, reaching out to touch it.

The statue reached out in tandem and grabbed her arm.

The statues began to creak and move as Vanessa screamed, ripping herself from its grasp and beginning to sprint in the opposite direction. Thinking fast, Luke swung the umbrella hard, knocking the first statue to the ground and pointing it threateningly at the other. _"STAY BACK!!!!!_ Back, foul beasts!!!"

His confidence faded when he saw the first statue begin to rise again, unharmed by the blow. He couldn't fight these things.

He turned on his heel and hurried after Vanessa, the two monsters hot on his tail. Their only option for escape was the dip in the ice wall, but it was much too high to climb onto. There had to be some other way to get up there…

"VANESSA!!!" He called, trying to speed up as much as he could. "Can you use your magic to clear that wall?!"

She looked over her shoulder, eyes widening when she saw the statues in pursuit. "I-I can try!!!"

Just a few feet from the wall, she crouched down, the snow whirling around her feet, and sprung up with a gust of icy wind, managing to grab the ledge and quickly hoist herself up. Luke followed close behind her and she leaned down, reaching down as he jumped up, using the umbrella to vault himself towards her, and grabbed her hand.

"Vanny, pull me up!!"

 _"I'm trying!!!_ I-"

Luke cut her off with a yelp as he felt a hand wrap around his ankle, looking down to see one of the statues pulling on it, the other circling to finish him off once he was brought down. He raised his other foot with a cry and brought it down hard on the statue's wrist, trying desperately to dislodge it.

 _"LUKE!!!! I-I can't hold onto you much longer!!!"_ Vanessa cried, fingers beginning to slip from his arm.

Finally, with one last solid kick, the statue's arm cracked and broke off, its fingers loosening and slipping until the disembodied hand fell into the snow below. Luke grabbed onto Vanessa's arm and walked himself up until he could grab the ledge, pulling himself up onto the wall with her help. Once he was safely up, he looked down, trying to catch his breath as he watched the headless statues slowly retreat. "Good lord...what are those things?! It would take years of practice and specialization to bring stone to life like that…"

When Vanessa didn't respond, he looked up at her, eyes widening.

"Vanny!! Your arm…!"

"I-I'll be alright...that horrible thing dug its fingers in so deeply…"

"You're not alright!! Here-" He reached up to his right sleeve, pulling on it as hard as he could until the soft fabric ripped, then moved over to Vanessa, gingerly moving her hand away from the wound. He wrapped the fabric around her arm as a makeshift bandage, tying it tightly and looking back up to her face. "There...that should stop the bleeding."

He sat back with a sigh, looking back to the manor. "I suppose that isn't an option anymore…"

"What are we going to do?"

After a moment, he stood, helping her to her feet as well. "We'll have to go to the forest, there's bound to be someone there that can help us."

He patted his pockets, eyes widening in horror. "I didn't pick up the-"

"Time piece?" 

Vanessa smiled, reaching into her nightgown pocket and producing the two halves of the time piece. Luke sighed in relief, placing a kiss on her cheek. "Where would I be without you, dear…"

With that settled, he began to look around, finally spotting a path they could walk on along the ledge, deeper into the ice barrier. The ground below was preferable, but there were more walls of ice blocking the way out, and with Vanessa's arm, it would be too risky to try and clear them all. He took her hand and led her along the path, shivering from the chill as they made their way toward the forest. It was a quiet walk, mostly to allow them both to take in what they had just seen and how they were going to get home. Luke didn't want to say it aloud, for Vanessa's sake, but he had no idea how they were going to fix this. He wanted to stay positive, he really did. But he also had to be logical. They had already found out that this new world was dangerous, much more dangerous than the peaceful life both of them were used to. Even if the prince did have a bit of experience in fencing, if that ice ledge had been just a bit taller, they would have both died. What would happen if they encountered a similarly undefeatable enemy with no help and no means of escape? They had to be careful. There had already been one injury, and Luke didn't intend on letting his wife be hurt again anytime soon.

"Luke, look, the bridge!"

He blinked, focusing back in on the world around him to see, indeed, the bridge leading to Subcon Forest. It had been smashed and broken, as if to prevent something from crossing it. How were they supposed to get across now?

The prince moved to the edge of the ledge, looking around. There were a few houses visible, pillars of ice spearing through them, and not a soul nearby, though he could see some activity in the forest across the bridge. Hopefully those creatures were sentient enough to help.

With a bit of work, he managed to find a bit of the wall that sloped down enough that they could just slide down, carrying Vanessa in his arms as he slid and setting her down once they'd reached the bottom. He pointedly ignored the maimed buildings as he walked over to the bridge, peering across to try and pick out something that was moving. When he saw a dark shape dart between the trees, he called out to it. "Hello?! Is someone there?! Can you help us?"

Luke had been about to give up and look for another way across when something emerged from the shadows. It appeared to be a small child wearing a dark purple cloak, with a glowing yellow light shining out from the hood instead of a face.

"Hello there! Do you understand me? Is there a way to get across this bridge? We-"

The child interrupted him with a shrill screeching noise, and a few animalistic clicks. He sighed, arms dropping down to his sides in defeat. "Of course. Who was I to think we'd meet a sentient-"

"Nah, I'm just joking, I can hear ya!"

Both prince and princess were taken aback at the somewhat adult sounding voice that suddenly burst from the child, who was giggling to itself at its little joke.

"Oh-you can! Can you please help us? My wife Vanny and I, we're not quite sure where we are or how to get back home, is there a way across this bridge?"

The child tapped where its chin would be in thought, tapping one foot on the stone. "Hmm...wait! I've got an idea! Stay right there!"

Before Luke could say any more, the child ran off into the forest, cloak trailing behind it. He sighed, turning to Vanessa. "Thank goodness...if there's one of them, there's probably more of them, and they might know something about these time pieces!"

Vanessa didn't respond. Luke's smile fell and he leaned down, taking her cheek in one hand. "What's wrong, my dear?"

She refused to look him in the eyes, gaze locked on the bottom hem of her dress. "What if you're wrong? What if we're only months in the future? Subcon as we know it could be in danger, and we don't even know what the threat is…"

The prince looked down as well. He didn't have an answer to that, because he wasn't so sure himself. Those houses outside the ice barrier looked relatively unchanged besides the obvious, and so did the manor itself. He couldn't prove for certain that they weren't as little as a _day_ in the future.

"...Vanny, sit with me for a moment."

He sat down on the bridge, and Vanessa slowly followed suit, looking up as he placed his hands over hers. "Perhaps it is true. Perhaps Subcon is doomed to die. But we cannot fret over things we can't change. It can drive one mad to do so. We don't know if this is our fate, and even if it is, I'd personally like to enjoy every moment I spend with you before then. When we made our vows, do you remember the most important one? My favorite one?"

Vanessa couldn't help but smile, wrapping her fingers around his own. "Till death do us part?"

Luke smiled right back. "Till death do us part."

He leaned forward, and their lips met. After a moment, he pulled back, pressing his forehead to hers and savoring the moment.

"...Hey! You guys done?"

The couple practically jumped out of their skin and turned toward the child, who was standing at the edge of the bridge with a rope in its hands. He quickly stood up with Vanessa in tow, nodding. "Erm-yes! We're ready!"

"Sweet! Hold onto the looped end of this, ignore the voices, and jump across one at a time! I'll yank you the rest of the way!"

Luke pursed his lips and looked over at Vanessa. She looked back at him with an understanding nod. It was their only way across.

"Alright. Which of us shall go first?"

"How about you, beanpole?"

"Beanp-? Well, sure, alright. Toss the rope across!"

The child stood on one end of the rope and threw the looped end across with both hands, into the prince's waiting arms. He winced as the strange glowing substance on it stuck to his fingers, doing what the child said and ignoring the sudden deep voice in his head complimenting his neck. Hopefully this would be quick. 

"...You _are_ going to pull me across right? You won't drop me?"

"Of course I won't drop you! The boss would _kill_ me if I lost a potential contract victim!"

That...didn't sound promising, but it was all he had. He took a deep breath, whispered a quick prayer, and took a running leap across the chasm, noose held tightly in his hands.

For a moment it seemed like he was doomed. The child wasn't pulling the rope. Then, at the last moment, it yanked the rope hard, pulling Luke over to the other side. He landed on his back with a wheeze, slowly getting to his feet. That would leave a bruise.

"Luke? Are you ok?" Vanessa called.

"I'm alright, Vanny! Come on across, I'll catch you!"

She looked hesitant, but caught the rope as it was thrown to her, holding on tight as she prepared to jump. Just like he had, she ran to the edge and sprung from the bridge, and this time the child pulled her across much sooner straight into the prince's waiting arms. He sighed in relief and set her down, kneeling to the child's eye level. "And to whom do I owe the gratitude for saving our lives?"

"I'm a Subconite!"

"...Do...you have a name?"

"Nope! But sometimes the boss gives us names, I think I'm Paul right now!"

"...Right. Thank you, Paul, you have my sincerest gratitude! Do you perhaps know what a "time piece" is?"

Paul thought for a moment. "Those hourglass thingies? Think the boss was collecting those a while back to keep away from that kid. I don't know nothin' about 'em."

Luke sighed, standing up. "Right! Can we speak to this boss of yours?"

Paul nodded quickly, turning towards the forest. "Sure! This way!"

Before Luke could protest, the Subconite was darting into the forest. He quickly grabbed Vanessa's hand and started after it. "HEY!! Wait up!!"

But it was no use. After a bit of running with no sign of Paul, Luke and Vanessa slowed to a stop, trying to catch their breath. They were deep in the decrepit forest now, with only trees and flowers around them. "O-oh dear...what are we going to do now?"

"Hello! Are you guys lost?"

The two turned around to see a child standing behind them, wearing a standard fox shaped mask. As they watched, the mask was lowered.

"Hi! I'm Hat Kid!"


	3. Secrets

"So...you know how to get us back?"

Hat Kid nodded as the prince and princess looked around the strange ship, rifling through her closet for a moment before giving up and closing it. "Yup! I'm the resident expert on time pieces here, it's a good thing you ran into me instead of Snatcher!"

Vanessa squinted, looking over from the pillow pile she was inspecting. "Snatcher? That doesn't sound like a very friendly name…"

"Yeah, he's a big meanie sometimes, but he's my contractually obligated BFF now! So he shouldn't bother us too much."

"...Alright."

Luke walked up the ramp to look out the window, eyes widening when he saw the empty space outside. He shuddered a bit, looking away and sitting down on the edge of the platform. "So, what do we need to do to get home?"

Hat Kid closed her toy box and plopped down in the chair next to her desk, inspecting both halves of the time piece sitting there. "Hmmmmm……I think there's about seven pieces of glass missing. We'll need to collect them all to fix the time piece, and when it's whole, it should automatically send you back to fix the time stream!"

Vanessa smiled, moving to Hat Kid's side. "Wonderful! Where can we find these glass shards?"

"Well, you said you broke it in front of the manor, right? That should mean that all seven pieces are scattered through Subcon Forest. They usually stay in the area that the time piece broke in."

Luke stood and joined his wife, peering over Hat Kid's shoulder. "And...will this freezing happen to us as well? Is this our future?"

The kid hummed in thought for a moment, then pulled out a piece of paper and some crayons, quickly scribbling out a sort of diagram.

"Maybe not. See, you guys were on the road to this future, but because Mu interrupted, you guys are in an entirely new timeline now! Depending on what happens because you guys got a time piece, you could have a completely different future!"

"So that means...we can't change this timeline?"

Hat Kid shook her head, putting the crayon down. "Nope, you can't change timelines, just create new ones."

Luke looked down, face falling a bit. "Ah...I was hoping there would be a way to save this Subcon as well."

The alien swiveled around in her chair, putting her chin in her hands. "By the way, you guys never told me your names! What am I supposed to call you?"

"Oh! Where are my manners, I am Prince Luke of Subcon Kingdom, and this is my wife Vanny!"

Hat Kid grinned, grabbing the brim of her hat and tipping it to them. "Hello, Luke! Hello, Vanny!"

Vanessa giggled a bit, bowing back to her. "Actually, that's only a nickname. You can call me Vane-"

She was cut off by a loud ringing from Hat Kid's wrist, and the girl clicked a band on her wrist, eyes widening when she read the words on it. "Peck, the metro shops are gonna close soon, I gotta go get you guys some clean clothes! Hold that thought, I'll be right back!"

Without waiting for an answer, she rushed out of the room, and Luke sighed, sitting down on the pile of pillows. "I think that's enough excitement for one day…"

Vanessa took a seat next to him and he turned, looking down at her. "How does your arm feel?"

"Still stings, but it's starting to ache less."

Luke let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, relieved she wasn't in danger of losing that arm. He laid down on his back, staring at the ceiling of the ship. "...Did you ever think we would go on such an exciting adventure in our lives?"

"No...but I can't say I wasn't expecting one."

"Well you certainly weren't expecting this, were you?"

She giggled a bit, laying down next to him. "I definitely saw it coming."

Luke snorted, giving her good shoulder a light shove. "You did not!"

They both laughed for a moment, then Luke huffed, turning on his side to face her. "You know...that was incredible, what you did back there. I would have been ripped apart by those statues if you hadn't saved me."

"I would do anything to keep you with me, my love."

Luke smiled warmly, cupping her head in one hand and pressing his forehead to hers. "I know, my dear."

_ Anything… _

He blinked, trying to figure out where the echo came from, then shook his head with a yawn. He was tired, he probably imagined it. "Right...we were getting ready for bed before all this, weren't we?"

"Shouldn't we wait until the hat girl comes back?" Even as she spoke, Vanessa was letting her head sink into the pillows, eyes fluttering as she struggled to keep them open.

"I think it'll be fine...we should get some rest. Tomorrow is a big day."

She slowly nodded, and pulled him closer, wrapping her arms around him as they both drifted off to sleep.

…

**_How could you do this to me…_ **

…

When the prince awoke, he quickly became aware that a blanket had been laid over the two of them, and Hat Kid was nowhere to be found. He yawned and stretched his arms, gently stroking Vanessa's cheek until her eyes slowly opened. "Good morning, my princess…"

"Good morning, my prince...did you sleep well?"

He nodded, sitting up and twisting around to stretch his back. "Are you ready to continue our adventure?"

"Of course, now that we've gotten a good night's sleep."

He looked around, spotting a simple, red, short sleeved shirt with a crown design on the front, and a pair of light colored jeans folded on the pillows next to him.

"These must be the clothes she bought us," Vanessa hummed, picking up the medium length, bright green dress next to her. "What a nice girl! She even left fresh bandages for my arm..."

"Come on, Vanny, let's get changed and go to thank her."

~~

After a quick breakfast(served to them by...a cat?? The feline apparently called herself Cooking Cat, and judging by the quality of her food, it was a well earned title), the trio travelled back down to the forest, ready to begin their hunt.

Luke looked around, properly taking in the forest now that he wasn't trying to run after a Subconite. "Where are we going to look first, young one?"

"Hmm...we could look in the swamp, or in the trees, or down the well, or-OH! I know where to start!" She started down the path, prince and princess following close behind.

"So, Hat Kid, do you know exactly what happened to Subcon?"

The kid shook her head, twirling her umbrella in her hand. "Not exactly, I do know the old mean queen lives in that manor you guys fell in front of."

Luke and Vanessa looked at eachother, confusion and fear shared between them, and Vanessa gripped the bag on her shoulder tightly. The queen? Vanessa's  _ mother _ lived there?

"And we shouldn't go there unless we have to, because she's…" Hat Kid shuddered a bit. "...Really scary."

"Noted. And what about this Snatcher fellow?"

"No clue! He's never told me anything about where he's from, only that he's a ghost and he owns this forest and he's been here a long long time."

"He owns this forest? What gives him the right to own an entire forest like that?"

Hat Kid shrugged. "Probably the fact that he'll take your soul and make you do dumb contracts and then try to kill you if you question it."

"That can't be legal! Someone should usurp this brute!"

The alien girl blew a raspberry at the air, hopping onto a nearby mushroom and bouncing off of it. "I dunno, the dwellers and subconites seem pretty happy with him here for some reason."

"I suppose...if they're happy."

"Hey-we're here!"

Luke looked up from his hands as Hat Kid gestured to a small clearing full of tree stump houses and small, snakelike creatures floating around, smiling brightly. "Welcome to Subcon Village!"

Vanessa looked around, stepping forward into the village. "What a quaint little place…"

"And look!" Hat Kid beamed, gesturing toward a block of ice on the far side of the town with a shining piece of glass frozen inside. "Our first shard!"

The trio quickly ran over to it, and Hat Kid snapped her fingers, looking around. "Right! I'll just use a cherry and a dweller to blow this u-...where did all the dwellers go??"

Luke looked up, and sure enough, all of the floating creatures were gone, vanished as soon as they had entered the clearing. Hat Kid crossed her arms, pouting. "Peck!! How are we gonna get this shard with no dwellers to make the cherry blow up?"

"I may be able to help with that!"

The girl looked up as Luke grinned, puffing his chest out a bit. "I've been practicing my fire magic lately! I'm...not an expert, but I'm sure I'll be able to use it to solve this conundrum!"

Hat Kid watched in awe as Luke backed up, taking a deep breath and holding out both hands in front of him, palms facing the ice. He closed his eyes and concentrated, willing his magic to work. After a moment, he felt a small heat building between his hands, and opened his eyes, sending the tiny fireball shooting into the ice. It melted a hole straight into it, then stopped around the middle and burned away, leaving the shard of glass sitting at the bottom. Hat Kid reached in and pulled it out, raising it into the air with a cheer. "We got one!! Luke, you're amazing!!"

The prince blushed sheepishly, rubbing his arm with a chuckle. "Ah-it was just a little bit of fire magic, I know people who can control it much better than I…"

Hat Kid had been about to reply when Vanessa suddenly shoved her way between them, taking his hand. "Yes, my prince, you are very skilled at your craft. Anyways, how do we go about reattaching it?"

"Gimme the time piece and I'll show you!"

Vanessa pulled the two halves of the hourglass from her bag and handed them to the kid, watching as she stuck them back together. The broken rods seemed to magically fuse back together, and as Hat Kid held the glass up to it, it locked into place, making the time piece glow for a moment before it fizzled back out.

Luke smiled, clapping his hands happily. "Amazing!! This should be a breeze, and we'll be back to our own time in...well, no time!"

"Not so fast, Lukey Luke," Hat Kid pointed an accusatory finger at him, and Vanessa's hands twitched by her sides as the alien slipped the time piece back into the bag. "We still have six more shards to find!"

"Right, I shouldn't be getting ahead of myself. Where can we look next?"

"Hmm...how about we go somewhere warmer? The burnt section of the forest has to have one!"

Luke's heart dropped into his boots.  _ "Burnt?" _

"Yeah! Come on!" Hat Kid raced on ahead, though she stayed within sight as the royal couple followed. Luke looked to Vanessa, gripping his arms. "Vanny, that thing she said earlier, about an "old mean queen"...you don't think-"

"I'm not sure. Mother has been growing more and more abrasive over the years...I do hope that we are simply mistaken and that is a different queen entirely."

She looked away, adjusting the bag on her shoulder. "But...maybe we should keep an eye on her when we return home, just in case. And...if drastic measures need to be taken-"

"They won't, I'll make sure of it." The prince's amber eyes met Vanessa's own crimson, and he watched the worry in them fade as he spoke. She sighed softly, and nodded, holding his hand to calm her nerves. "You're right...let's just get going."

~~

It was a bit of a walk to get to the area Hat Kid had spoken of, and as she described, the trees and ground were badly burnt, some vegetation still glowing with forgotten embers. The kid had been looking around the entire walk, peering under rocks and behind flowers. "Ugh, there's gotta be one somewhere around here!"

She threw her head back in exasperation, then froze, eyes widening as she pointed up into the trees.  _ "There!!!  _ There's one!!"

The couple looked up to see it, sparkling from atop a thin branch, about twenty or so feet off the ground. That...was very high up. How were they going to get it down?

Hat Kid seemed to already have an answer, sticking a pin onto her hat and pointing the umbrella she carried toward a nearby, sturdier branch. A metal claw appeared at the tip and shot out from the umbrella on a chain, pulling the girl up into the air, and she began to swing, trying to grab the shard. But it was mere inches out of her reach.

She dropped back down to the ground (remarkably, completely fine. How sturdy was this kid that she could be fine after a drop that high??), sighing and fixing her cape a bit. "Figures it's just out of reach...hey, do one of you guys wanna try using it? I bet you could reach it!"

Luke looked to Vanessa, down at the bandages around her arm. And stepped forward. "I'll do it!"

Hat Kid flashed him a wide smile, taking off her hat and handing both it and the umbrella to him. "So, I have the hookshot badge equipped, all you gotta do is point the umbrella at the thing you wanna grab onto, press this button, and it'll pull you up and you can swing over to the shard!"

Luke nodded, struck with another faint sense of familiarity as he placed the hat atop his head. He turned the umbrella over in his hands, then pointed it at the same branch the kid had locked onto and clicked the button. Almost instantly, the chain shot out of the umbrella and yanked him upward with a yelp, sending him careening toward the branch, almost hitting it before he swung back in the other direction. He instinctively clung to the umbrella, trying to catch his breath for a moment.

"You can do it!!!"

He looked down to see Hat Kid cheering him on, a few of the snakelike creatures, apparently called dwellers, beginning to gather around curiously. He swallowed his nerves and planted his feet on the trunk of the tree, pushing off to swing himself toward the glass. He pulled his legs in and shoved them out to gain momentum, reaching out with his free hand. Almost...got it…

His fingers closed around the thin branch and with a pull, it snapped, sending the glass falling to the ground.

But Hat Kid's cheers drowned out another snapping sound.

He didn't realize the branch he'd been swinging from was breaking until he started to fall.

He barely heard Vanessa scream his name over the air rushing past his ears and his own memories flashing quickly by his eyes. Were they close enough to catch him in time?  _ Could  _ they even catch him at all?

He closed his eyes, and hit the ground.

...No. That wasn't the ground. That was many things under him suddenly, cushioning his fall. He opened his eyes, looking down at himself.

He stared at the dwellers as they slowly lowered him down to the ground, a bit wobbly on his feet as they stood him up. He looked them over, all four of them staring back at him.

Almost like...they recognized him.

_ "LUKE!!!!" _

The prince turned around as the dwellers fled, Hat Kid and Vanessa rushing to his side. "Dear, are you ok?! You almost-"

"I'm ok, Vanny. I'm ok…"

He looked over to where the glass shard fell, walking over and picking it up. "On the bright side! I'm ok, and we got the glass shard!"

Hat Kid looked concerned, but quickly shook it off and took the shard, holding it up to the time piece until it clicked into place. "Two down, five to go! What do you guys say we go back to the ship and have some lunch?"

Both royalty nodded, and Luke sighed in relief. "I am getting a bit peckish."

~~

"I'll be right back, I'm going to change my bandages."

"Do you need any help, dear? I could-"

"No, I'm alright, go eat!"

Vanessa stepped into the ship bathroom, closing the door behind her with a sigh. She stood in front of the mirror, staring at herself for a moment, then unraveled the bandages on her arm, looking at them.

It was still there.

She swallowed, touching the wound and bringing her fingers up to her face.

...Black blood.

Luke couldn't know about this.


	4. Dragged Away

He didn't find himself here often. The ghost stared down into the chasm, eyes slowly drifting up to the frozen wasteland on the other side. He'd heard from one of the Subconites that two people had come across the bridge, but it looked like they'd somehow escaped the forest before he could get to them. Figured.

Snatcher gripped his upper arms, unable to keep his gaze from sliding to what houses were visible from the bridge, bursting from inside with ice. Thank god the blood on them wasn't visible anymore. He was wondering how many centuries it would take for those red stains to be washed away. His memory wasn't as good as it used to be, but if he closed his eyes, he could picture it again. The streets bustling with happy people, no ice to be seen, the smell of flowers and baking bread in the air, the occasional line of children that would weave through the crowd, laughing and playing. He always said he hated it, and he preferred Subcon the way it was now, but...sometimes he wished he could go back. He missed dancing in the courtyard, playing hide and seek with the children, finding snakes in the gardens, telling ghost stories under the moonlight…

But he couldn't change the past.

Snatcher sighed, arms falling to his sides, and slithered back toward his tree.

~~

After a quick lunch to wind down from the events of the day, the three were back down in the forest, and Hat Kid was already skipping to the right of the path, towards something in the distance that looked to be a swamp. "I think we should start by checking the well this time, I wouldn't be surprised if one fell down there. The only problem is how all of us are gonna get across the swamp…"

As they approached the area, Luke's silent plea for the "swamp" to be normal was ignored, that much was obvious as soon as he saw the ghostly purple hands slinking over and beneath the surface. He dreaded to think of what the water was made of.

Hat Kid looked around, searching for a way across. "We could go through the trees, but after earlier I think it'd be too dangerous for you guys...what to do, what to do…"

"Perhaps your hat and umbrella have another contraption that can get us across?"

The kid perked up at Vanessa's words. "Actually, yeah! You guys ever ridden a scooter before?"

The confused look on both of their faces was a good enough answer.

"Right, you're from like a million years ago, you're gonna love this!" She removed the hat from her head and, with a flick of her wrist and a puff of white smoke, it transformed into a red, topless cap with white wings stitched onto the side. With another wave of the hat, a larger puff of smoke revealed a machine with a saddle and two wheels, to which Hat Kid sat down on with a proud expression. "Voila! My scooter! This'll get us across the swamp in no time!"

Luke's eyes sparkled with glee at the new technology, but Vanessa wasn't as pleased. "That looks nice, but...are you sure we won't sink from the weight of all three of us?"

Hat Kid opened her mouth, then closed it. "Ah. Good point."

She hopped off of the scooter and paced for a moment, then her eyes lit up with a dangerous glint and she snapped her fingers. "Perfect! I'll just make it go so fast that we won't have time to sink!"

"And how do you plan on doing that?"

"Watch and learn, miss Vanny!" The girl hopped onto the scooter and pointed it toward the swamp, pulling out her umbrella and pointing it in the opposite direction. "Might wanna stand out of the way of this."

The couple stepped to the side as the umbrella began to make a humming sound, getting louder and louder, then a brilliant orange blast of energy shot from the tip, sending Hat Kid and the scooter rocketing over the surface of the swamp faster than Luke had ever seen anything move before. It was mere seconds before she was out of sight, disappearing into the trees, and Luke and Vanessa shared a look. Was she going to come back at all?

Luckily, they'd barely had time to process what just happened when the scooter came flying back towards them, screeching to a halt once it was back on land. Hat Kid stumbled off of the scooter, looking wildly ecstatic, hair blown around her face. "That was!! Fast!!! It'll probably go a little slower with all of us on the scooter, but it'll definitely keep us from sinking!"

Luke was apprehensive, but he nodded anyway, having accepted by now that he'd need to get into some dangerous situations to get home. The kid hopped back on the scooter, and Vanessa sat down first, Luke sitting on the back to keep his wife safe in the middle.

"Alright! Luke, since you're the caboose, you've gotta hold the umbrella. Same thing as before, just click and hold that button!"

Luke took the umbrella from her, made sure they were pointed in the right direction, then steadied himself, holding out the umbrella. He clicked the button, and it began to vibrate in his hand, energy building inside before the same blast of orange energy escaped, propelling them into the swamp. Luke held on tightly to the two other passengers with his free hand, keeping the umbrella steady behind him as Hat Kid guided the scooter toward a large structure in the distance. "There it is!! Alright, let go of the buttooonnnnn... _ NOW!!!" _

Luke let go and the beam fizzled out as Hat Kid pulled the scooter onto a wooden platform with a bell, directly in front of the well she had been speaking of. The three passengers got off and the scooter poofed away, her hat back to its original form as she looked up at the well. "There's gotta be one in there, I just know it!"

With a ring of the nearby bell, Hat Kid led them up a staircase of magic leaves to stand atop the well, peering inside and cheering when she saw a sparkle from far below. "What did I tell ya? Let's go get it!"

Before Luke could stop her, she had jumped down the well, and he could only watch in horror as she disappeared down the well. That was it, there was no way she could-

"Come on down, guys! There's water down here to break your fall!"

...He should really just stop questioning things by this point. He looked to Vanessa, then nodded, climbing into the well and letting himself fall in.

Sure enough, his fall was stopped short by a pool of (thankfully clean) water at the bottom of the well, just deep enough to keep him from getting hurt. He waded out of it and called up to Vanessa, bracing himself and catching her as she came falling down as well. He set her down and they followed Hat Kid, who was scanning the floor of the cave to the left. "I  _ know _ I saw it...where did it go?"

She stood up, looking a bit sheepish as she kicked at the sand. "Sorry, guys, I uh...I think it got buried, this might take a while."

"That's alright, kiddo, we'll wait in the other room!"

Luke exhaled softly, moving into a large room with a plug in the middle and leaning against the wall. "I think that was the fastest I've ever moved in my life...and here I thought my old horse riding lessons were fast paced."

"Likewise. I don't think I ever  _ want _ to go that fast again, either-a bit too thrilling for me, really…but as long as we can both make it back to our manor safely, I'm willing to do anything to make it happen."

He nodded, looking up toward the top of the well. "This has been...quite a strange series of events. But I suppose that's to be expected, a lot of things have changed over the years."

She chuckled slightly, looking up as well. "Yes...if you had told me a week or so ago that we would be traveling into the future, I would have called you out of your mind!"

"It's a little unbelievable, isn't it?" He chuckled right back, watching the sides of the cave glitter from the light above. "...I wonder if this will change us in any way. Y'know, like in stories, where people go on an unexpected adventure and find themselves growing into better people at the end."

"Yes...yes, I wonder..."

She took a side-glance at her hand, frowning at the black smudges present on them here and there. Not all changes were for the better, it seemed. "...Do you feel like you've changed any?"

Luke thought for a moment, looking down at his own hands. He thought back to the way the dwellers had looked at him after they saved him, and the faint look of recognition in their ghostly eyes. "I'm...not sure. I'm not even sure what aspect of myself would change. But then again, we haven't even halfway completed the time piece yet. Perhaps there is more to come as we search for the rest of its shards."

"... Yes, perhaps...perhaps you'll stop pursuing that law degree of yours after this, hmm?"

Luke's smile drooped a bit, and his brows furrowed. He knew this conversation wasn't going to end well, not if she was bringing up his career path in such a way. 

"...No, probably not. Vanny, it's been my dream job ever since I was a child, and I'm positive those skills will help me rule Subcon as well. I don't think that's going to change."

"And  _ my _ dream job was a florist. But you know where that got me, don't you? I have responsibilities being a ruler! And so do you."

"Dear, please, we've had this conversation many times. I'm going to pursue my dream to the best of my ability, even with my existing responsibilities. Is it because you're concerned for my ability to handle both things at once? Because I...I can't think of any other reason why you wouldn't be happy for me."

"Maybe I am! Maybe it's also because I happen to believe in my own judgement, that could be a factor too!" She crossed her arms, one foot tapping angrily as a thin layer of ice spread over the floor beneath her. 

Luke's smile had fully faded by that point, and he stood up from the wall, starting to walk over to her. "Vanny...what if...what if you're wrong, what if it turns out fine and I become an amazing lawyer  _ and _ prince? Think about it, a lawyer prince!"

"And what if i'm not? Where will you be, Luke? Do you not trust me already? Don't you respect my decisions?"

"I trust you! And I respect you! I'd just...if it does go wrong, I'd like to take the fall for my own decisions and learn from my mistakes. How am I supposed to do anything if I'm constantly worrying about the risks?"

Luke jumped and raised his arms in front of his face as she suddenly stomped her foot, glaring angrily at him.  _ "YOU CAN'T AFFORD TO PAY FOR YOUR OWN MISTAKES!!!  _ That's how royalty works!! One little mistake and it all comes crashing down on your head and there's  _ nothing _ you can do about it!"

Luke opened his mouth to reply, but froze suddenly, eyes blown wide. 

"V-Vanny…"

_ "What?!" _

"Behind you…"

Vanessa didn't even have time to turn around before the spider was upon her, snatching her up in its claws and beginning to drag her to the top of the well as she screamed and flailed. Her name caught in Luke's throat as he rushed after her, eyes wide with horror. There was no way he could get up there, what was he supposed to…

"HANG ON!!!"

Hat Kid came rushing back into the room, raising her umbrella and firing blasts of energy at the enormous creature, who seemed to just barely weave out of the way of every attack. She cursed under her breath as it scuttled into a hole at the top of the well, running over to the plug in the middle of the room. "We have to get up there, quick!! Follow me!!"

She used the same grappling hook as before to pull the plug loose, then rode the gushing water up to a platform above, Luke following close behind. The world rushed by in a blur as he followed her, jumping over gaps and climbing up ladders as the water below them rose higher. Any thoughts of how dangerous all of this was were shoved to the back of his mind, his wife's safety now his only priority. 

He was forced to stop as they reached a large gap, looking down at the water as Hat Kid easily swung across with her umbrella hook. She stopped as she reached the other side, eyes widening as she had the same realization.  _ "Peck!!!  _ How are we going to get you across?!"

Luke looked up at the post she had swung from, then nodded to himself, backing up to get a running start.

"What are you-"

He ran forward and leapt from the wooden platform, grabbing onto the post with both hands and using the momentum to swing himself up and around, perching on top of it. With another leap, he landed on top of the second post, then sprung to the third, finally landing on the opposite platform and continuing to make his way up the well. "Kiddo-what are you standing there for,  _ LET'S GO!!!" _

Hat Kid blinked and shook herself back to reality, hurrying after him. As they ascended, Vanessa's screams grew louder and closer, until they finally spotted the spider, in the middle of wrapping the princess in silk.

_ "VANNY!!!" _

At Luke's call, the spider turned around, hissing angrily and crawling along the wall toward him, sharp legs ready to pierce through him. He yelped and ducked out of the way as one came down, nearly running into the wall as he darted toward Vanessa. Something sparked in her eyes and she writhed, suddenly ripping through the silk with a cry and prying herself free. Luke froze for a moment, then closed the distance between them, wrapping the shaking princess up in his arms and stroking her hair. "Don't worry, you're safe now...you're safe now…"

They both looked up as Hat Kid let out a battle cry, bringing her umbrella down hard on the spider's head until it screeched and popped, sending something shiny flying toward the rising water. Hat Kid quickly reached out and caught it, beaming as she held it in the air. "That's where the shard went!! Now we've got three!"

Her celebration was cut off by a rumble as the water began to rise further. They weren't safe yet.

She quickly ran down the tunnel, grabbing Luke's hand and pulling the two along. Behind them, the water rose faster and faster, the whole well shaking around them as they ran toward the light of the forest at the end.

With seconds to spare, they emerged in Subcon Village and dove to the side, a torrent of water cascading out of the tunnel and filling the pond. Luke felt a hand grab his own and yank it away from Hat Kid's as they sat on the bank, his other hand running through his hair as he tried to catch his breath. "Th-that...that was……exciting."

"It certainly was."

Hat Kid stood up, shaking herself off and pocketing the glass shard. "I've seen worse. But yeah, I get that you guys aren't used to this. Do you wanna go back to the ship and just hang there for the rest of the day?"

Luke stood, watching the dwellers inspect the new water for a moment. He bit his lip, trying to ignore what he'd seen. He had to have imagined it in the heat of the moment, he wasn't paying attention clearly.

Yeah, he definitely hadn't seen Vanessa rip through the silk with claws instead of fingers.

"Yes, I'd very much like that."

~~

There were some very interesting books on the ethics of time travel in the kid's ship, and what better way to wind down after a day of adventure with a good book? Hat Kid had already gone to sleep, and Vanessa had just laid down herself, curled up next to him as he flipped through the textbook he was holding.

He bit his lip, then sighed a bit, looking up from his reading. "Vanny?"

"Yes, dear?"

"I'm sorry about earlier. I just...you know it's always been my dream to be a lawyer. I guess I wasn't taking your feelings into consideration over my own."

She was silent for a moment, then she lifted her head, putting a hand on top of his own. "It's alright, my prince, I forgive you."

He smiled and leaned down to kiss her forehead, quietly returning to his book as she laid back down.

…

He wasn't sure when he'd fallen asleep, but when he opened his eyes, it was burning.

Everything around him was burning with spikes of icy blue flame, and he was being dragged backward, towards somewhere dark and cold. He looked up to see two heavily armored guards holding onto him, pulling him down somewhere, he didn't want to go there  _ he didn't want to go there  _ **_WHAT DID HE DO WRONG_ **

He tried to resist, to gain his footing, but the ground was slick beneath his feet, and his cries went unheard as he screamed for help, despite the eyes watching him from the blaze around him.

It clicked all too suddenly. He was being arrested. These were royal guards, and he was being locked away. But why?  _ What did he do?? _

The stinging cold began to set in, searing pain, and he choked on his own blood as he was slammed into a wall and chains were clamped around his arms.

His eyes opened and he shot up from the pillow pile, choking on his own spit for a moment before he was able to breathe once more. He looked around, relaxing slightly when he saw he hadn't woken Vanessa or Hat Kid with his nightmare. 

A nightmare...he rarely ever had those, even as a kid. Why would such a vivid one take hold of him now? Was it the stress of the day's events? Was it his own lingering doubts? Something shuddered deep in his chest and he stared into the dark room around him, lit only with a faint yellow light from somewhere unknown.

...He should be getting some rest. He laid back down, letting his tired eyes drift shut once more.


	5. The Culprit

A final day of warmth.

The blood spread over the snow, a spotlight in the white blanket of the clearing.

Hands reached up to clutch the spear of ice, fingers twitching uselessly.

A line of red dripped from frozen lips.

The forest sung with anguished wails.

And the sands rose to the top of the hourglass. 

~~

"Alright, day two of getting you guys home is a go!!"

Hat Kid put her hands on her hips, smiling as she looked around the forest. Luke and Vanessa came up behind her, looking around as well. The forest seemed to grow stifling the longer they were stuck in the future, and now Luke felt as if the trees were reaching down toward him, like the ground was going to open up and swallow him, like those ropes would grab him by the arms and hang him for all to see…

They needed to get home, quickly.

"How about we ask one of those Subconites for help?" he suggested, brushing the hair from his eyes with one hand.

"Ask us about what?"

All three of them jumped at the voice behind them and turned to see a Subconite standing behind them, silently looking up at them. Vanessa sighed in relief, stepping forward and leaning down to the small spirit. "Hello, small one! Have you seen any pieces of shiny glass fallen anywhere?"

"No, but I have seen some ligma around!"

"Wh-Ligma? What's ligma?"

_ "LIGMA B-" _

"ALRIGHT YOU WON'T BE ANY HELP." Hat Kid yelled suddenly, raising her umbrella.

The Subconite squeaked, raising its hands in defense. "OK OK I SAW ONE, DON'T HIT ME!!! I saw one at the edge of the swamp around the path to Subcon Village!!"

The three perked up and Hat Kid lowered the umbrella, beaming. "Wow, that should be easy to get!

~~

The trio stood at the edge of the swamp, staring down into the water at the bottom, what looked to be at least ten feet deep, at the small piece of sparkling glass shining through the swarm of disembodied hands waiting to grab them.

"...This won't be easy to get."

Vanessa winced, slowly looking over at the alien girl. "...Do you have a hat to help with that?"

"Nope."

"Alright."

Luke grit his teeth, trying to pry his hopes from the murky water. "Well...maybe we could find something long and pull it out! Perhaps one of those ro-"

"The hands would grab it too. I'm surprised they haven't grabbed the glass, actually."

"...Well...um...we…...we could...we-"

"We CAN'T!!!" Vanessa snapped suddenly, whirling around to face him. His eyes widened and he braced himself. She wouldn't...not in front of the kid…

He relaxed slightly when she stayed where she was, pointing an accusatory finger at him as shadows of ice crept up the sides of her dress. "We  _ can't,  _ because of  _ YOU!!! _ I should have never let you carry that time piece, it's like you can't do ANYTHING RIGHT!!!"

"Wh-Vanny, please, neither of us could have predicted that thunder would-"

"I have to do  _ EVERYTHING _ MYSELF because you-you- _ are you even taking your role as prince seriously?!?!" _

"Vanny-"

_ "NO, YOU DON'T GET TO TALK, not after you got us trapped here in the first place!!!" _

_ "Vanny, I was-" _

_ "SHUT UP!!!!! I AM SICK AND TIRED OF YOU TALKING BACK TO ME!!!! If you can't even do something as simple as hold onto an hourglass, if you can't do something as simple as STAY WITH ME and not run away to be some-some  _ **_LAWYER_ ** _ , THEN I MIGHT AS WELL MAKE YOU DO IT MYSE-" _

**_"VANNY, I WAS ONLY TRYING TO HELP YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!"_ **

With his cry, he swung a hand out to the side, heat burning at his claw tips, and a wave of fire spewed forth from them, nearly hitting Hat Kid and searing over the surface of the swamp. He opened his mouth to cry out again, fangs bared, but was cut off by a yell.

"Luke, look!!"

He blinked the yellow from his eyes and looked over at the swamp.

At the area the fire had hit the water, the hands had receded, though they were ever so slowly beginning to cover it back up again. They were afraid of fire.

_...Why were they afraid of fire? _

"Luke…" Hat Kid mumbled, tentatively approaching the irritated couple. "You...you can make the hands pull away with your fire magic! That's how we can get the shard!!"

Vanessa was silent as Luke looked down at his hands. Perfectly normal, human hands. Why was he checking that? "I...I can. But I...my fire magic isn't that strong, I don't know if I could keep them away long enough for you to swim down and get it."

"Why don't you try it? Let's see what you can do!"

It didn't take a genius to know that Hat Kid was trying to distract them from their argument, and Luke had never been more happy to take that opportunity. 

He swallowed and walked up to the water, staring down in it for a moment, trying to focus on the glass shard instead of the hands around it. He took a deep breath and held out his hands, closing his eyes and focusing. A tiny ring of fire appeared on the surface of the water, slowly expanding outward as he concentrated more and more. A bead of sweat dripped down his brow and he grit his teeth, trying to tap into what he had just summoned, legs rigid as he put all of his energy into his magic. He felt a heat burning in his chest, spreading outward toward his limbs, a raging fire completely overtaking him, swirling, burning, searing…

**_Freezing._ **

His eyes shot open as he gasped in a sharp breath (when had he stopped breathing?) and nearly fell over as his legs weakened, quickly shifting his stance to catch himself. Hat Kid started to run to him, but Vanessa stepped in her way, eyes wide with concern as she gripped his arm  _ stop touching me stop it stop stop st _

"Dear, a-are you alright?"

Luke blinked, focusing on her voice as he caught his breath. "I'm…...I'm ok. I'm ok. Kid, how big was that circle?"

The kid winced, looking anywhere but his gaze. "...About a foot wide."

Ah. Luke sighed, putting his hand over Vanessa's on his arm. Hat Kid frowned, then walked up to them both, hands on her hips. "Well, mister Luke, it looks like you need some training! We need to get you in top-ship-shape for firemaking, or we're never gonna get you guys back home!"

She grinned, eyes sparkling. "And I know exactly who's gonna train you!"

~~

_ "We want to die! Yaaaay!" _

Luke watched the strange foxes dance around their bonfire as Hat Kid walked up to them, waving to them. "Hello, fire spirits! You can die later, we need your help!"

The fire spirits barely reacted, continuing to dance and twirl.

"...Fire spirits? Can you guys hear m-"

_ "Yess, yes, we hear you!"  _ One of them giggled, spinning on its heel to boop her nose.  _ "You said you will help us fuel our flame! Only the finest paintings will do!" _

"What? No-I said we need  _ your _ help!"

_ "Yes, only the finest paintings!" _

Hat Kid groaned, tipping her head back to the sky. "Uggghhh, this is useless, let's find someone el-Luke?"

Before Luke knew what he was doing, he had stepped forward, clearing his throat. "Um, hello? Fire spirits? Are you listening to me?"

The fire spirits...stopped. All three of their dances slowed to a stop at the sound of his voice and they turned to look at him, ears perked straight up. He froze, blinking for a moment, then shook his head and continued.

"Yes-um, greetings, fire spirits. Would you be so kind as to help us? I'm trying to get home, and to get there I need to strengthen my fire magic. You three seem to know a lot about the craft, and-er...well, I was wondering if you could-"

_ "YOU!!!" _

Luke jumped as the foxes cried out happily, rushing from the fire to swarm around him, looking him over with wide, gleeful grins. 

_ "You are here, finally!!" _

_ "We always knew you would come, yes, we did!" _

_ "You've finally come out of that tree to help us, yes!" _

There was a cold aura radiating from somewhere behind him, but the heat of the spirits around him quickly masked it, his brows furrowing in confusion. "That...tree?"

_ "Yes, the tree, the tree! Of course we will help you! You have forgotten your magic, but we will help you burn bright again!" _

_ "Buuuurrrnnn, buuuuurrrnnnn!" _

_ "Come, dance with us! We will show you the steps! And you will fuel our fire!" _

Luke looked back to Hat Kid, who gave him a wide smile and a nod, then sighed. "...Alright. It's a deal."

The fire spirits cheered, jumping for joy as they pulled him over to the bonfire. They gathered around him, pushing him closer and closer, and he was about to pull away from the heat when they stopped, circling him and giggling to themselves as they took their own places around the blaze.

_ "Do you feel it? The call of the flame, the song it sings?" _

Luke listened. "...Yes?"

_ "Listen, listen! It sings in your heart!" _

_ "Become one with the flame, become one with the fire!" _

This...seemed a bit silly. But it was necessary to get home. Luke exhaled slowly, closing his eyes and focusing on his heart, listening.

_ "Yesss, good, good! You are doing well!"  _ The fire spirits laughed happily, beginning their dance once more.

_ "Now, let your body move with the flame! Feel it's song burn within you! Perform your dance!" _

_ "Dance, dance with us! Don't be shy!" _

He paused, then thought back to the brief ballet class he'd taken when he was a child. He barely remembered them, but he started with what he did remember, bringing his hands together in front of himself and lifting up onto his toes. He knew it would be a bit hard to do in boots and jeans, but it was the only dance he knew besides waltzing, and the fire spirits seemed intent on him dancing alone.

He exhaled slowly, extending an arm out and bringing his leg up to meet it. He kept his eyes closed, using the heat of the bonfire to judge where he was, bringing his leg back down and slowly twirling on the balls of his feet. He paused as he tried to remember the next move, slowly opening his eyes.

_ "Don't think, too much thinking!" _

_ "Yes yes, just dance! Let the fire move through you!" _

Luke looked down at his hands, then into the fire. It crackled and roared, flowing and billowing with life. He had to become part of it if he wanted to successfully control it.

"...Let the fire move through me, huh?"

He closed his eyes again, this time thinking back to the memory of how it felt to dance, not the dance itself. He'd only been fourteen when he took the classes, full of wonder and a desire to try new things. It was hard to learn, and there were many times that he'd fallen down, but every time, he would get back up again and continue to dance.

His feet began to move of their own accord, his body suddenly lighter, like he was floating. He felt heat at his fingertips and relaxed, letting the embers spread over his hands, flitting between his fingers like quicksilver. He smiled as the flame whispered to him, humming along to the tune. So this was what the fire spirits were talking about. He could hear it now.

Something inside him knew this was a melody the fire had never sang before, a brand new song just for him. He tried to help it along through his dance, ignoring the slight pain in his toes as he spun, letting its music guide his movements. It was a beautiful teamwork to keep the performance going. Luke felt the heat spread along his palms and through his body, though it didn't burn this time. It felt pleasantly warm, like being wrapped in a fluffy blanket next to a fireplace on a chilly winter day. No wonder the spirits were so happy, if this is what they felt all the time.

He didn't have to open his eyes to know they were following him as he twirled around the fire, their soft giggles and cheers showing they were copying his every movement. Every spin, every leap, every pause.

He hoped Vanessa was watching too.

He opened his eyes, and the heat flooded from within him as he spun, faster and faster and faster…

With a stomp of his foot and a flick of his wrist, he landed.

_ "Thank you!! Thank you, our dear prince!!" _

And the bonfire roared.

When the flames died out and he couldn't hear the giggling of the fire spirits, he opened his eyes, looking around. They were gone.

He stood up and scanned the area, cheeks flushing a sheepish pink when he noticed Hat Kid staring at him, jaw dropped wide enough to catch a few dozen flies. "...Er...you alright, kiddo?"

"THAT WAS SO AWESOME."

Luke grinned, looking pleased with himself. "Well, I d-"

Vanessa placed a hand on his shoulder  _ where did she come from _ , leaning over him to smile at Hat Kid. "Yes, my prince is very talented! But I don't think a bit of ballet will help us much, it was a bit of a fluke here."

Hat Kid's brows furrowed, and Luke wished they hadn't. "What are you talking about? We wouldn't have a chance at getting that shard if-"

"Kid, let it go."

Luke smiled, and it never came close to reaching his eyes. "Let's just go get that shard."

Vanny seemed pleased, patting her husband's shoulder and ignoring Hat Kid's stare as she began walking back toward the swamp.

And Luke pushed the realization that those fire spirits somehow knew he was royalty to the back of his mind.

~~

It only occurred to Luke once they had returned to the swamp that the three of them hadn't said a word the entire way back. He stepped up to the edge of the water and looked down into it for a moment. The hands looked back, watching, waiting for him to make a move.

"...Alright, here's the plan, kiddo. Can you swim?"

"Enough!"

"Good, here's what we're gonna do. I'll make a ring of fire on top of the water and push the hands out as far as I can, and you'll jump in, swim down and grab the shard, and then swim back up and I'll pull you out. Sound like a plan?"

Hat Kid saluted, and Luke couldn't help but smile. He got into position, much more relaxed than he had been last time, and looked back over his shoulder. "You ready?"

"Ready is my middle name! Hat "Ready" Kid!"

He nodded, then began to move, bringing his hands together in front of himself and closing his eyes as a ball of fire began to form between them. He slid his outstretched leg back toward himself and twirled in place, bringing his hands around himself before suddenly extending them, sending the fireball toward the water. It hit and spread out when it touched the water, burning a ring at least six feet wide over the surface. He stayed frozen in that position as Hat Kid took a running leap, diving into the water with a splash that almost took out the flames around it. Luke kept the ring of fire lit, watching the girl's shape disappear into the murky swamp.

"...I'm sorry."

He blinked. And turned around to look at Vanessa, who was holding her arms, face darkened as she looked up at him. "I'm sorry for saying your dancing was a fluke. I'm just...the air of this place is stifling, and it's making me...not think straight."

Luke just stood in awe for a moment, then shook himself off. "Vanessa...it's ok. You're just stressed, you always tend to be with situations you can't control, and you tend to say things you don't mean when you're stressed. I know you didn't mean that."

She smiled at him, walking up closer and placing a hand on his shoulder. "Your fire powers have developed remarkably as well. What was it like to dance with those spirits?"

Luke was about to reply when something suddenly struck him, and he turned back to the water, eyes wide.

Hat Kid still hadn't come up from the swamp yet.

He pried his shoulder away from her and rushed to look over the edge, keeping one hand out to ensure the fire ring stayed lit. He couldn't see her or the glass shard.

"Luke, n-"

"Vanny, stay back, I'm going in!!"

He lowered his hand and ran forward, jumping into the water and propelling himself downward. The cloudy water stung his eyes as he looked around, trying to spot where she'd gone, swimming deeper and deeper. Finally, he spotted a writhing shape at the bottom of the swamp, kicking as fast as he could to get to her.

She looked up at him, eyes wide and fingers tugging at the hand locked onto her ankle, preventing her from surfacing. He pulled her up by her arms and raised a leg, kicking at the hand until it let go, swimming for the surface as the others began to close in on them.

Inches from the surface, purple hands grabbed onto his shoulders.

And everything went white.

…

The ringing in his ears faded into screaming, many people screaming, their pounding footsteps making the ground under him shake.

They were running.

From what?

Shapes came into view, people he recognized, people he knew. The people of Subcon Kingdom. Why were they running?

_ Burn bright… _

Everything was on fire. They were fleeing from the blaze spreading over everything, pouring from the rocks of the bonfire, charring everything it touched, the fire spirits twirling and spinning and laughing.

_ Become one with the fire… _

He looked down at his hands. They were engulfed with bright blue embers, shining brightly enough that Luke had to look away from them. The afterimage flickered on his eyes as he looked around, the silhouettes of running people tinted a flaming blue.

What...was this?

All he could see were flowers, his hands were cold, and he was yanked upward.

Something grabbed onto both of his hands, making him nearly lose his grip on Hat Kid, and hauled him out of the water, just in time as the hands closed over the hole he'd created. He coughed and sputtered, gasping for air as he recovered.

_ "Luke!!!  _ Luke, are you ok?! Did you get the shard?!"

Hat Kid reached into her pocket without lifting her face from the ground and held up the piece of glass, dropping it onto the grass. Thank god.

Luke swallowed a breath, raising up onto his elbows and knees, then slowly getting to his feet. "I'm...I'm ok. I think."

He looked down. "...Kiddo? You alright?"

She gave him a slow thumbs up, and he sighed in relief.

"...I think. We should rest for a bit."

Hat Kid quietly got up, nodding and shaking the water off of herself before heading back towards where they had dropped in.

Before Luke could follow, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Vanessa holding onto him, looking down at her feet. "...Yes? What is it, Vanny?"

She waited until Hat Kid was out of earshot, then looked up at him, eyes glistening slightly with tears. "Luke...I need to tell you something."

Luke leaned down to be at eye level with her, listening. She took in a deep breath, letting it out slowly.

"...Remember how I was so keen on keeping the time piece in the cellar? That...that's because, when that girl appeared in the manor, I had a vision. I saw Subcon, and...everyone was dead. They had all been killed by something...something horrible…"

She sniffled a bit, ice spreading over her fingers. "I didn't...I didn't want to tell you, I didn't want to make you worry. Because you said it yourself, we shouldn't worry about things we're not certain of. But...those fire spirits recognized you."

Luke swallowed. They had. There was no denying that. They had even known that he was a prince.

"...Maybe...maybe they mistook me for someone else, they-"

He jolted to the side. The stinging pain in his cheek registered much quicker than the realization that she'd slapped him across the face. His legs shook, and he didn't stand back up or dare to make eye contact, clutching the rapidly forming handprint on his cheek. Thank god the kid had walked away. She didn't need to see this.

Vanessa opened her mouth to speak, then slowly closed it. She stared at him for a moment, something dark sucking all the light from her eyes, leaving only a burning red. Then she walked by him, heading back toward where Hat Kid had left. A few feet away, she stopped, and looked over her shoulder.

And Luke obediently followed behind.

~~

Back at the ship, Luke laid on the pillow pile, staring up at the ceiling. Vanessa and Hat Kid were getting lunch in the kitchen, but Luke had declined, feeling a bit sick to his stomach. He tried not to think about it, but the images kept flashing in his head. His hands, covered in fire, and his people running in fear. Why was there a burnt section of the forest? Why were the hands in the swamp afraid of heat? Why did the fire spirits recognize him? Why was Vanessa suddenly furious with him?

He wasn't sure when he'd fallen asleep, but when he opened his eyes, he was dreaming again.

The screams were back, but they were within him now, and he was moving against his own will, arms swiping at something as his vision came into focus.

Something was in his hand.

He looked down at the flickering object, a bright blue flame. No, not a flame. Flames didn't have eyes and a mouth.

A soul.

His eyes widened and he looked around.

There were bodies piled around him as far as he could see, dull and lifeless, soulless.

The screaming within him was louder.

He looked back down at his hand-his  _ claws _ -slowly moving the soul towards his chest.

_ No no no no he didn't want this he didn't want to do this STOP STOP STOP STOP _

He gasped as he absorbed the soul, a rush of power searing through his entire body.

And his eyes shot open.

He sat up with a cry, lungs heaving, fighting for air. He couldn't have been asleep for more than a few minutes, he could still hear the two girls fixing lunch in the kitchen. He stared at the opposite wall for what felt like hours. Then, slowly, breath trembling in his throat, he lifted his hands to his face.

...It wasn't the cold. It wasn't Vanessa, it wasn't her mother, it wasn't anything else.

_ He was the one who destroyed Subcon Kingdom. _


	6. Mirror

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> get ready yall, heres where shit hits the fan

It was cold. The snow drifted down slowly, endlessly, blanketing the clearing in a perpetual white. The footprints leading back to the two headless statues were quickly covered, the stairs slick with ice. Something had blown a torrent of snow up against the front doors, or someone had placed it there purposefully. Which of the two wasn't clear. The inside of the manor was dark, but compared to the darkness of the clearing, the windows seemed to glow with an unearthly light, watching for any signs of movement. The manor itself loomed over the surrounding area, pillars of sharp ice jutting out from it in every direction, as if to ward off any poor soul that dared to come near. With how menacing it looked, it was doubtful anyone would ever come near this place.

Except for one person.

Shadows trailed behind the queen on the carpet as she stalked down the hall, red eyes shining through the darkness. Finally...she was sure her prince would never leave her now. It had been a few months since...the unfortunate incident, and a few weeks since she'd been down there to see her love. But now she would make sure he never left. He was an outgoing and brave man, it was one of the things she'd fallen in love with in the first place. Apparently brave enough to  _ betray her. _

A low growl rumbled past her lips as she recalled that day, her claws dragging along the wall. She had always been questionable to his loyalty, especially as he headed off for school. It seemed like he was just making excuse after excuse to be away from her, no matter how often he lied and said it was "just a tutor" or "a friend from the neighboring kingdom" or…"just a florist".

The straw that broke the camel's back was that florist. She finally caught him when she heard he'd returned from his studies, and headed out into the town square to meet him. She could still remember the pain of her heart snapping in two when her suspicions were confirmed. He was holding hands with another woman.  _ That _ woman.

The rest was mostly a blur, her thoughts too clouded by anger to remember exactly what conversation they'd had. He tried to lie to her again, and she'd finally had enough. She didn't even realize her magic had created two guards from the suits of armor in the other room until they came stomping in. And the idea had occurred to her. A way she could take action, to ensure her love would never betray her again.

**_"LOCK HIM IN THE CELLAR!!!!!! CHAIN HIM THERE FOR ETERNITY!!!!!!!!!"_ **

She lowered her claws from the wall, gaze flitting to the cellar doors. It had been quite a while since she'd checked on him. But he was certainly still there, right?

...Perhaps he was hungry. When was the last time she had fed him?

She found herself wandering toward the cellar doors, making her way down the steps and reaching for the doorknob. 

She stopped. Something wasn't right. The doors were flung open and she descended into the cellar, head whipping around to face the wall.

At the empty chains hanging from it.

He was gone.

Her wails echoed around the icy clearing.

And she woke up.

~~

"Is Vanny not coming with us this time?"

Hat Kid looked around as they landed in Subcon Forest, trying to find the blonde princess. Luke shook his head, one hand drifting to his cheek. "No...she said her arm was beginning to ache again, and volunteered to stay on the ship and watch over the time piece."

"Oh, ok!"

Luckily, they didn't need to wonder where to search next, as this time a different(?) Subconite was sitting near where they dropped in, splashing a hand in the water moat around the tree house. Hat Kid perked up, and Luke prayed for a non life-threatening shard location this time.

"Hey!! Have you seen any glass shards anywhere?" Hat Kid called.

The Subconite looked up, then nodded. "Yeah! The boss grabbed one earlier!"

Luke's hopes fell along with Hat Kid's face.

"And he stashed it on top of this tree here!"

Hat Kid looked dejected. Luke sat down on the ground. He looked up. With how far up he could see, the top still wasn't visible. Amazing.

"...Well!!! Ok! Don't worry, Luke, I've climbed this tree before and I can do it again! Now just stay down here while I-"

"No."

Hat Kid turned, looking confused, and Luke was a bit confused by his own reply until the realization struck him. If he  _ was  _ a traitor, he wanted to make up for it as much as possible. He wanted to make it up to poor Vanessa. He wanted to make it up to this girl, who had been through so much just to help them. He wanted to make it up to Subcon Kingdom, and return their princess back safely.

"No?"

"I'm coming with you."

"Luke, are you sure? It's really high up and-"

_ "Please,  _ just...just let me do this."

She looked concerned, but nodded. "Okay...I'll catch you with my grappling hook if you fall, ok?"

It horrified, but didn't surprise Luke that something in his guilt riddled mind wouldn't care if she failed to catch him.

~~

After a tedious ordeal of carefully picking their way over vines, haphazardly bouncing on mushrooms, and scrambling over branches, they finally reached the top of the tree. Hat Kid stopped on the last branch, peering over the edge of the giant mushroom, then suddenly ducking back down.

Luke frowned, then slowly but surely looked over the edge himself.

His eyes widened and he ducked down as well, lowering his voice to a whisper.  _ "What in the world IS that thing, kiddo?" _

_ "Snatcher." _

_ "THAT'S Snatcher?! I...no wonder no one's usurped him yet, that beast looks terrifying!!" _

_ "At least you haven't had the pleasure of fighting him." _

Hat Kid thought for a moment, then nodded to Luke.  _ "I'm gonna go up there first, and if I think it's safe, I'll tell you to come up here too. He may be mean, but I'm sure he won't hurt you if I tell him not to!" _

_ "And that creature will listen to your authority, why…?"  _ he mumbled under his breath as Hat Kid climbed up onto the mushroom. He leaned against the tree trunk, trying not to look down as he listened closely.

"Hey!! Snatcher, wake up!!"

There was a grunt, then the sound of something large shifting on top of the mushroom and stretching.

"Good morning, Snatcher! Even though it's like, three in the afternoon."

"Ugh...kiddo, what are you even doing here? How'd you get up here?"

Luke froze. There was something awfully familiar about that voice, but he couldn't seem to place it. That was  _ Snatcher's  _ voice?

"It's not  _ that _ hard to climb this tree, y'know."

"Tell that to the twelve times you've scared the souls out of me by splatting on the ground while I'm reading."

"You've been counting?"

"Solely for the purpose of making this exact rebuttal."

"Evil, evil ghost, you are."

"It's what I do best, kid."

Luke's blood ran cold. That's right, Hat Kid had mentioned this Snatcher fellow was a ghost. What kind of horrible things had this spirit done to become so powerful?

"Anyways, the hell did you wake me up for? It better be important, I was having the best dream."

"Oh yeah! One of the Subconites said you found a shard of glass, can I have it?"

"Hmm...maybe you can. What are you willing to give me in return?"

"Come onnnnnn, Snatcher, I need it to help these guys get home!"

"You what?"

"Mu dropped a time piece in the past and these two people accidentally broke it and got transported into the future, and I need that glass piece to fix the time piece and send them back!"

There was a pause. Then a shifting noise.

"That person you're talking about is right there, aren't they. C'mon, kiddo, I'm not that dense."

"...Ugh, alright fine, come on up, Luke."

The prince swallowed nervously, steeling his nerves, before climbing up onto the mushroom. The snakelike ghost that called himself Snatcher had uncurled and was laying on his side, upper body propped up with one arm. His eyes had opened now, revealing two glowing yellow orbs that seemed to pierce straight into Luke's soul, more of the yellow light shining from his lips(???) and perfectly framing the two large fangs in his mouth. He was one of the most terrifying creatures Luke had ever laid eyes on.

Which was why it took Luke aback when  _ Snatcher _ was the one to recoil, eyes stretched wide in alarm.

He blinked, then shook himself off, clearing his throat. "Hello, er, Snatcher! It is very nice to meet you. My name is-"

There was a crunching sound as the ghost's claws ripped into the mushroom underneath him.

"...Luke…"

Hat Kid looked even more concerned than she had with Luke, and he could tell. This wasn't normal. Something was terribly wrong.

But before she could even open her mouth, Snatcher was gone.

The ghost suddenly sprung up and flew over the side of the mushroom, disappearing down below in seconds. Hat Kid yelled after him, running to the edge, but it was too late. She groaned, plopping down in a sitting position. "I-what the heck was  _ that?! _ He didn't even give us the shard…"

Luke only sighed, sitting down next to her. "I don't know...how are we going to get the shard back?"

"I'll have to talk to him later, he can't hide forever. In the meantime, why don't we look for another one?"

Luke opened his mouth to ask her where they would look, but he stopped as a thought struck him, completely unprecedented, as if it were planted in his head by some unseen force.

"The cellar…"

"What?"

"There's one in the cellar."

Hat Kid was quiet for a moment. "...Are...are you sure?"

When Luke nodded, she gulped, then stood. "Well, let's get it over with! At least it's in the cellar and not in the attic, there's no way I'm going through that old, creepy house with that old, creepy lady in it ever again."

Luke stood up as well, ready to roll with the punches this time around. "Alright. How are we going to get down?"

"Simple! Hold onto me!"

Luke did as he was told, wrapping his arms around the kid as she pulled out her umbrella.

And jumped.

Despite all he'd been through so far, Luke couldn't help the scream that ripped from his throat as they plummeted toward the ground, holding onto Hat Kid for dear life as they fell. Logically, he knew the kid wouldn't do this if she wasn't sure they would be fine, but primal fear was powerful enough to make his life flash before his eyes.

But sure enough, seconds before they would hit the ground, Hat Kid's umbrella opened, acting as a parachute and abruptly slowing their fall. They drifted to the ground and the prince immediately let go, legs shaking as he stumbled a bit. "...K-kid, can I ask a favor and propose we never do that again?"

Hat Kid only nodded, closing the umbrella back up. "Alright, let's head to that manor!"

~~

The trip across the bridge was much easier with Hat Kid's scooter, and they easily cleared the gap, getting off on the other side. Luke looked around at the decimated houses, a pit of unease settling in his stomach. Was all of this ice a countermeasure to his own fire magic? Was that why the area was engulfed in cold, to keep himself from burning the kingdom?

Getting through the ice barrier was much easier as well, as Hat Kid seemed to have a solution for every wall that blocked their path. Luke barely said a word as they progressed, shivering slightly from the chill.

Until finally, they were back.

There were still faint footprints in the snow where he and Vanessa had fled from the statues, and tiny spots of blood following one of the trails. He swallowed.

"Kid...how are we gonna get by those statues?"

"Just don't get too close to them, if we make a wide circle we'll be fine!"

He nodded, sticking close to the alien as they walked toward and around the manor, snow crunching under their feet. Was it Luke's imagination, or did it seem even colder than it had been two days ago?

Eventually, they reached the back of the building, and Luke jumped as the cellar doors swung open with a bang. Hat Kid was unphased, walking straight toward them and hopping in. Luke started to follow her as well, but stopped, freezing in place for a moment. He didn't want to be here. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, his legs shaking with an unfounded fear. Why didn't he want to go down there? What was down there that suddenly made him so...terrified?

"Luke, are you coming?"

He took a breath, and swallowed it. He had to go down there, or he would never get home. He stepped forward, down into the cellar.

Almost instantly, the doors slammed shut behind him, making both of them jump and cutting off their only source of light.

"Hey-that doesn't usually happen! Now I can't see anything!"

"Wait, kiddo...don't the glass shards glow a bit? This should make it easier to find it."

"Ohhh, good idea! Start looking around!"

Luke held his hands out in front of him, feet sloshing in the ankle deep water at the bottom of the cellar as he slowly walked forward. Eventually he hit a wall and felt along it, straining his eyes for the faint glow of the time piece shard. As he continued forward, the feeling of dread in his chest continued to rise, almost stopping him in his tracks, but he kept going. The sooner he found the shard, the sooner he could leave this place. He may never come down to the cellar again even when they returned home.

Finally, his eyes caught a faint glitter halfway up the wall, and he turned toward it, relaxing a bit. Just like he hoped, he found it quickly, now they could leave.

He made his way over to it, and flicked a finger to summon a small flame, so he could better see what it was resting on.

...Chains? He never remembered there being chains in the cellar, why were…

The sudden jolt of searing pain was enough to bring him to his knees.

Yet, he didn't hit water as he went down, clutching his head with a cry. He hit a hard floor, and when he was able to open his eyes, he was in the cellar again, back as he remembered it. No chains, no water, no chill outside.

But the sense of dread remained.

He could hear yelling upstairs.

He wasn't sure how he silently climbed the stairs to the first floor, in a dreamlike trance as he peered into the lounge.

He saw himself standing there, holding a bouquet of flowers.

And he saw Vanessa, face twisted in rage, screaming.

**_"LOCK HIM IN THE CELLAR!!!!!! CHAIN HIM THERE FOR ETERNITY!!!!!!!!!"_ **

Two armed guards swept into the room and grabbed the other him, ignoring the man's kicking and wailing as he was dragged down to the cellar. Luke could only watch as his princess collapsed to the floor in a sobbing, screaming heap, dark ice spreading over the room.

_ What did he do? _

He quickly fled the room, hurrying down to the cellar to see the guards fastening chains to the wall and locking him in them. When they backed up, he hung there limply, as if on display, as if he were…

...Dead.

How many days had passed?

Luke suddenly became aware that it was months later. He closed his eyes, trying to shut out the screams rising in his head. They didn't stop.

Against his will, his eyes were forced open.

And he saw his corpse.

His own screams joined the masses.

He could hear them, shrieking his name, anguished and dying, burning,  _ burning _

_ Luke… _

**_Luke…_ **

**_L u k e . . ._ **

_ "LUKE!!!!!!" _

There was water underneath him again, and light in the room from the open cellar doors, and two small hands shaking him by the shoulders as he tried to calm his lurching stomach. 

"LUKE?!?!? LUKE, WE HAVE TO GO,  _ NOW!!!!" _

The kid…? What was she…?

An enraged shriek from above them finally snapped him out of it completely. 

They had to go.

Through his vision induced stupor, he managed to grab the glass shard, stumbling to his feet and letting Hat Kid drag him out of the cellar. The world moved by in a blur as he sat down on the scooter, squeezing his eyes shut as he tried to block out everything, the world around him, the visions within him, he just wanted it all to  _ stop. _

He opened his eyes when the scooter slowed to a stop, safely on the other side of the bridge again. Hat Kid scrambled off, at Luke's side in an instant. "Luke?!?! Luke, are you ok?! Y-you...you suddenly started screaming, and you fell down, and I-I thought you were hurt, and-and…"

"I can't…"

Hat Kid blinked. "You...can't what?"

Luke held his head in his hands, shoulders shaking as he struggled to catch his breath. "I-I can't do this...I'm not strong enough, I...I don't want to do this anymore...I just want to go home…"

The two were silent for a moment.

"...I...I dunno how to help, but let's get you back to the ship. Cooking Cat can help, she's like a mom to me and she can be your mom too! Come on, let's get out of here."

Luke managed to look up, eyes stinging with tears, to see that the kid was holding her hand out to him, smiling softly. He blinked, then smiled back, taking her hand and standing up from the scooter. He knew she didn't understand, and so did she, but her kindness was what he needed the most right now.

Hat Kid started telling him the story of how she came to this planet as they walked along the path back to the drop off point, about Mustache Girl and the Mafia and about two birds competing for something called a "movie" award. He didn't fully understand what she was talking about, but focusing on her was helping tremendously to get his mind off of things.

"And then he said the train was gonna blow up in-oh, we're back already!"

The two stopped in front of the empty treehouse and Hat Kid pulled back her sleeve, fiddling with the band on her wrist. "Let's see here…"

Luke let out a soft breath, looking up towards the swirling clouds above.

At the large shadow directly above him.

He squinted, then his eyes widened as he realized the shadow was headed directly for them, claws outstretched to grab them.

_ "KID, LOOK OUT!!!!" _

He grabbed Hat Kid and dove out of the way, just in time for the shadowy claws to slam into the ground where they had just been. He coughed, trying to wave the dust from his eyes, and looked up.

Into the burning yellow eyes of Snatcher.

Luke pulled himself backwards along the ground as Snatcher raised up, clawed hands flexing in anticipation.  **_"You...how DARE you even DREAM of coming here!!! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MUCH PAIN YOU'VE CAUSED ME?!?!?!"_ **

Luke couldn't move, frozen in fear as the furious ghost crawled closer.  **_"YOU'RE THE REASON EVERYONE DIED!!!!! YOU'RE THE REASON I DIED!!!!!! NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE HAPPENED IF YOU'D JUST-"_ **

_ "SNATCHER, STOP!!!!!" _

Snatcher whipped around, extending a hand, and dark purple vines burst from the ground, wrapping around Hat Kid until she was trapped in a small cage of them.  **_"YOU STAY OUT OF THIS, YOU LITTLE BRAT!!!!!!! THIS ISN'T YOUR FIGHT!!!"_ **

Snatcher turned back to Luke, one hand slamming down next to him.  **_"Now...hold still, because I'M going to make things right AND KILL YOU BEFORE YOU GET A CHANCE TO HURT ANYONE."_ **

The features of his face shifted into a single glowing yellow circle, and Luke felt the ground under him begin to vibrate.

_ Run. _

He finally managed to get himself moving, rolling out of the way just as a blast of energy erupted from the ground. He hauled himself to his feet and darted into the burnt woods as the ghost roared, beginning to tear through the forest after him.

**_"YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY THAT EASILY!!!!!"_ **

He didn't put any thought into where he was going, dodging out of the way as a blue fireball came searing towards him, using the explosion it created as cover to veer to the right. It didn't work for long, and Snatcher was back on his tail in mere seconds, crashing through the trees and swiping at him as he ran.

**_"THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT, YOU'RE THE ONE TO BLAME FOR ALL OF THIS!!!!"_ **

He couldn't outrun him, he had to hide. When he felt the heat of another big fireball at his back, he ducked low, turning back and using the explosion as cover once more as he dove into a nearby shack. He huddled into one corner, one hand over his mouth to muffle his gasps as he tried to catch his breath.

**_"WHERE DID YOU GO?!?! YOU CAN'T HIDE FROM ME FOREVER!!!!!"_ **

He stayed as still as he could as Snatcher rampaged around the area, searching for him. He glanced outside, spotting the tree house in the distance. If he could just make a beeline through there, and tear Hat Kid out of those vines…

The shack began to vibrate.

He barely had time to get up and move before the energy blast demolished the shack, a scream ripping from his throat as it seared across his upper arm. He scrambled out of the wreckage, chest heaving as he began to run again, heading back toward the path.

**_"Look at you, running away from your problems AGAIN!!!!! WELL THIS TIME, YOU CAN'T RUN FAST ENOUGH!!!!!!!"_ **

There was no warning as the swiping claw slammed into him, sending him flying across the path. He fell hard, the wind knocked from his lungs as he collided with the ground. Then he slowly rose, coughing hard as he managed to get to his feet.

There was nothing in front of him. He was on the broken bridge. Snatcher was behind him.

He was cornered.

He turned around, clutching his arm as the ghost rose up, a wicked grin stretched across his face.  **_"Ahahaha...AHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!! LOOK AT YOU NOW!!!!!! WEAK AND SCARED, JUST LIKE YOU ALWAYS WERE!!!!!!! JUST LIKE YOU ALWAYS HAVE BEEN!!!!!!"_ **

Luke's heart stopped as Snatcher's hands raised into the air, a purple and yellow ball of energy beginning to form between them.

**_"Any final words,_ ** **_LUKE??_ ** **_WELL TOO BAD!!!!!! YOU DON'T GET ANY, I SURE AS HELL DIDN'T!!!!!"_ **

He moved his hands down, and the ball of energy grew larger.

**_"Goodnight, PRINCE."_ **

_ All your fault… _

_ All because of you... _

_ You did this… _

_ You did...what? _

_ What did he do. _

_ What did he do what did he do WHAT DID HE DO _

Something snapped.

**_"_ ** **_WHAT DID I DO?!?!?!?!?!?!_ ** **_"_ **

The forest was silent. Luke's shriek stopped it and Snatcher in its tracks, the ghost going still, the ball of energy hanging in place between his hands.

_ "WHAT DID I DO TO YOU?!?! WHAT DID I DO TO SUBCON?!?! DID I BURN IT?!?! IS THAT WHY THERE'S ICE EVERYWHERE?! IS THAT WHY VANESSA IS MAD AT ME?!?! I ALREADY KNOW, I KNOW I DID SOMETHING HORRIBLE,  _ _ AND NO ONE WILL TELL ME WHAT I DID!!!!!!! _ _ " _

His legs nearly buckled as he grabbed onto his hair, frantically ripping at it as tears spilled down his cheeks.  _ "I KNOW I DID SOMETHING, I KNOW I'M A TRAITOR TO MY KINGDOM, I KNOW I BETRAYED VANESSA AND WHOEVER YOU ARE AND MY PEOPLE, SO JUST TELL ME!!!!!!  _ _ TELL ME WHAT I DID WRONG!!!!!!!!!! _ _ TELL ME WHY YOU'RE TRYING TO KILL ME AND WHY EVERYONE IS DEAD AND WHY I WAS LOCKED IN THE CELLAR TO DIE!!!!!!" _

His knees gave out and he fell to the ground, gasping for breath between sobs.  _ "I'M NOT GOING BACK!!!! I CAN'T GO BACK, I CAN'T LET MYSELF HURT SUBCON, I CAN'T!!!!! I DON'T CARE HOW MUCH I JUST WANT TO GO HOME, I CAN'T LET MYSELF HURT THEM!!!!!! I CAN'T...I CAN'T...I...I can't……" _

Any other words he had to say were drowned under his tears. Snatcher watched in silence as he broke down, the ball of energy fading completely along with his rage and his hands falling to his sides. All he felt now was horror, and an overwhelming sense of guilt at what he'd done.

Or what he'd let himself become. 

_ "...J-just get it over with…" _

He blinked as Luke's voice croaked out, the prince's hands sliding down to rest on the pavement.  _ "Do it. Kill me. I'm ready for it. If it's what you need to do to save my kingdom, then DO IT." _

Snatcher didn't reply. His hands shook.

And he began to shrink.

Luke grit his teeth, sitting up onto his knees before opening his eyes.  _ "I SAID GET IT OVER WITH, WHY AREN'T YOU-" _

He stopped.

His breath caught in his throat.

It was like looking into a mirror.

Snatcher sighed, getting down on one knee to look him in the eyes. And then he spoke.

And Luke's blood ran cold.

"You didn't destroy Subcon.  _ She _ did."


	7. Goodbye

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> blood warning in the illustrations for this chapter, and also a heaping helping of angst :)

Cold.

That was the only way he could describe it at this point.

It was hard to perceive things in his current state. Exhaustion and starvation created a thick wall in his senses, as if the world around him had been somewhat muted. He wasn't even sure he could move his legs anymore, despite the amount of time he spent staring at them these past few months. He didn't have a reason to move them anyway. The chains holding him to the wall had proven to be quite tough once they were reinforced.

His first attempt at escaping had gone...not so great.  _ She  _ had been right outside the cellar doors and heard the chains snap, quickly sweeping into the room to find him lying on the floor, shaking from fear and chill.

The new chains cut so deeply into him. He'd lost the ability to care anymore.

He wasn't sure if she had frozen his legs as well or if they had just begun to atrophy from lack of use, but a curious attempt proved that they were definitely unusable now. No matter how much his tired brain willed them to even twitch, his legs only dangled limply, lifelessly. Even if he could walk, he had given up on escaping by this point. With how cold it was and the lack of rescue, he was pretty sure there wasn't even a kingdom to go back to if he did get out. It was hopeless.

The only thing he could do was wait for death to finally claim him.

Maybe one day he would understand what he had done wrong, why she had snapped so badly. It wasn't uncommon for...her anger to get the better of her, but it wasn't like her to do something this drastic. She hadn't even told him what she was accusing him of or let him explain, just screamed that he was lying and demanded he be locked in the cellar. Where had those two guards come from, anyway?

And now...whatever monster she'd become was far beyond reason. He'd lost the will to try and convince her of his innocence two weeks into his imprisonment. Even the normal tactics of reassuring his love for her until she calmed down weren't working. And here he was. Hung up on the wall like some sort of sick trophy, slowly dying.

He loved what he did, both his pursuit of law and his royal status, but with both of those happening at once, he hardly had time to just relax and think. Now, ironically enough, he had nothing else to do but think. It was the one thing he could do besides sleep, and he feared that if he closed his eyes once more, he would never open them. 

Today, he thought about Vanessa.

Not how she was now. About the Vanessa he once loved.

It had been a planned marriage, ever since they were kids, but he had almost forgotten about that soon after he met her. Perhaps it was just his young mind, full of curiosity and wonder, but he remembered her being the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. Her short blonde hair, silky smooth and glittering in the sunlight, had been pulled back in a ponytail, presumably by her parents, secured with a fabric pin styled after a rose. When he'd first seen her, he would only realize later that she was wearing just a bit of makeup and a pretty, but uncomfortable looking dress, definitely an attempt to swoon the young prince into falling for her early on. He didn't need all of that to fall in love with her. It was only in spending time with her, without the influence of both her own and his own parents, that he began to spiral down the hellish path that led to where he was today.

Memories were beginning to blur together as his breath wheezed through icy lungs, but he recalled something else. Perhaps it was the adrenaline, the heat of the moment, but she had been the most beautiful thing he had ever seen once again. The train of her wedding dress was held up by two happy looking women, flowers braided into their hair. More flowers of the same kind were woven into the edges of the dress and the band of her wedding veil, though none were as marvelous as the smile on her face. It was the smile he'd fallen in love with, and he felt his heart swell with joy as it grew closer, its beat beginning to lose its rhythm as his body grew numb. Today was the day.

Today was the day he would be married.

Today was the day he died.

The blur between reality and memories was growing, and his legs felt stiff as she approached him, her warm smile melting the ice covering the room around him. He reached out to her, his shaking hand starved down to the bone, and stroked her cheek, lifting the veil ever so slightly. His heart was beating so fast, so very slowly, the ache of his body trying to keep his blood flowing making his eyes unfocused as they stared into hers. The whole kingdom was watching, and no one was watching, waiting for the moment to arrive. A knot twisted in his stomach, he was so hungry, and yet it was filled with butterflies. He swallowed dryly, voice hoarse as he recited his vows. She only listened with that same smile, the smile he'd never see again. His chest ached with emotion, the chains digging into his skin nearly silencing him, but he pressed on, reciting the words he knew so well. They never reached his own ears. He slipped the ring onto her finger, and she did his own, and her hands were cold. She looked up at him, red eyes burning with passion, and spoke.

_ "Till death do us part." _

It hit so suddenly. So suddenly that what little air he had left caught in his throat, his eyes shooting open and his entire body stiffening with the horrible realization. His head spun, dry tears welling in his eyes and falling down his cheeks, silent words choking past his lips, bony hands curling into fists. After all this time. He'd never seen it. But now it was as clear as day.

Her smile was so horribly, terribly, maliciously  **_fake._ **

It all came rushing up to him at once. That same wicked smile, countless times gone unnoticed, glaring at him from every corner of his life. It was always there, trapping him, making sure he never stepped out of line. It was there through the good and the bad. It was there when he had finally proposed, shrouded through joyful tears. It was there as he tended to his bruises one stormy night, clouded under an insincere apology.

It had always been there.

And he had been blinded through a rosy lens.

At any other time, he would have shook his head and ignored it, and let his vision be clouded once more. But now was different. There was nothing to catch him as he fell into doubt, nothing to bounce him back up into the smothering embers of love.

And he fell hard.

Through the creeping cold around him, he felt a searing, burning sensation, clawing its way through his chest and out through his limbs. It was a feeling he'd never felt before, but one that would consume him forever.

**_Fury._ **

With the last of his strength, he opened his mouth and roared.

And fell.

~~

"...And once I realized I was dead, I just...left."

Snatcher sighed, finishing his tale with a sad glance in Luke's direction. "That's when I saw what she had done to the kingdom...and I knew I was right. I started absorbing souls and, well...here I am."

His gaze darted to Hat Kid instead, who had escaped her viney cage and caught up to them shortly after Luke's outburst. She looked up at him, eyes wide, processing the story she'd just been told. "So...you and Prince Luke...are the same person? And...Princess Vanny and Queen Vanessa are the same person too?"

Snatcher nodded, and Hat Kid winced. "Th-that means...we've been helping Vanessa the whole time?! Wait--that's why she slapped my hand away that one time, and why she said your ballet skills didn't help any and why those fire spirits said you came out of the tree and-and-!"

"Alright, alright, we get it, kiddo." the ghost huffed.

Snatcher looked back at Luke, whose expression was intense, but unreadable. It was impossible to tell if he was processing the information at all, but if he was, it wasn't going well.

"...What are we gonna do? We can't send Luke back there with her, she's gonna-!"

_ "You can, and you will." _

Luke stood, eyes shrouded in darkness and fists clenched by his sides. "I will accept and forgive many things, maybe sometimes I shouldn't. But  _ lying _ to me, and desecrating the name of  _ the woman I love, is UNFORGIVABLE." _

"Luke...I think he's telling the truth…"

_ "AND YOU TRUST THIS BEAST WHO TRIED TO KILL YOU NOT TO LIE TO YOU?!?!" _ the prince growled, flames sparking at the tips of his fingers. Whether it was the stress of all he'd been through or the influence of his visions and displacement in the timeline affecting his temper, he didn't care, shoulders shaking as he gestured violently toward Snatcher.  _ "Why in the HELL would I ever become THIS?!?! WHY would Vanessa destroy the kingdom she LOVES?!?!  _ Th...that's  _ such BULLSHIT!!!!!" _

Snatcher only sighed. "That's what I thought you'd say. I knew it was pointless to try and convince you."

_ "CONVINCE ME?!?! Convince me that my WIFE is going to KILL ME?!"  _

"Luke-"

"NO.  _ I  _ am going to convince  _ YOU  _ that she is NO THREAT TO ME WHATSOEVER."

Luke looked down at Hat Kid, eyes a brighter yellow than they had ever been before.  _ "I want to go back to the ship." _

Hat Kid, too terrified to disobey, nodded and clicked the button on her wristband.

And rose-tinted glasses took on a more scarlet hue.

~~

Vanessa was still in the bedroom. Of course she was, why wouldn't she be? She smiled, but her face fell as soon as she saw Luke's expression, melting into concern.  _ Real, genuine concern. _ ...Right?

"My prince, are you alright?" she asked, getting to her feet. She had the time piece in her hands, and it looked like there were three pieces missing from it. That's right, he still had the shard from the cellar in his pocket, Snatcher had one, and the last piece was a mystery. They were so close to getting home.

He ignored her question, fishing the glass from his pocket. He barely noticed as the edge cut his finger, holding it up and letting it click into place on the hourglass.

His blood spread over the surface of the time piece, then faded away.

Vanessa looked up at him, expression unreadable as if she were trying to figure out what she should feel. "...Do you know where the last two pieces are?"

"I know where one of them is. Not the last one."

The princess relaxed, then looked between the two of them, brows furrowing. "...Why are you two looking at me like that?"

Hat Kid refused to meet her gaze. Luke looked straight into her eyes.

"...I would never doubt you. But I need you to answer a question. Honestly."

"Yes, dear?"

"Would you ever let your magic get out of control? Would your ice magic ever get out of control enough to destroy the kingdom?"

Vanessa's face fell. She squinted a bit, lips twitching. "Luke, wh-"

_ "Vanessa." _

She looked down. Her hands twitched by her sides. Then she looked up.

And her smile sent shivers down Luke's spine. Why did that same smile he'd seen all his life suddenly feel...different now?

"No, it wouldn't. I can control exactly what my magic does at any time."

Despite the doubting whispers earlier, all of Luke's head seemed to agree that she wasn't lying. She definitely had her ice magic completely under control.

...But why did that make him feel even more uneasy?

"...Luke?"

He needed to prove it further. He needed to prove to himself that he wasn't wrong.

"...Vanny, I want you to come down to the forest with me. I want you to meet someone. And I want you to prove to him that you're not the monster he thinks you are."

"Luke, I don't think-"

She stopped when she saw the way he stared at her, hands twitching again and eyes narrowing dangerously. But she sighed and nodded, giving the child caught in the middle a single look.

And they were speeding down to the forest once more. 

~~

They landed in front of the tree house as usual, far down the path from where Snatcher was waiting. Hopefully he was still there.

While Vanessa or Hat Kid usually walked in front of the trio, Luke led the way this time, boots leaving slightly charred prints in the dirt. The silence was deafening, not even the forest made a sound, as if the entire world were terrified of what the angry prince would do. 

Even Vanessa didn't say a word, eyes darkened as she brought up the rear of the group. If she had figured anything out, it was impossible to tell, as she gave nothing away from her expression. Luke didn't look back at her.

Finally, he could make out the form of Snatcher in the distance, still shifted to look like him and fiddling with something in his hands. Something sparkly. He still had the shard.

He turned slightly toward them as he approached, but didn't look up, frown deepening as they stopped a few feet away from him.

Luke squinted. "Snatcher. I brought someone to talk to you."

The ghost stiffened. It seemed like he knew who Luke had brought, but his body didn't cooperate, his head raising to look at her anyway.

He froze. His legs locked into place, glowing yellow eyes blown wide with horror at the woman standing before him. His fingers shook around the glass shard, and Luke was sure it would cut his hands as well if he were alive. He was frozen in fear, too terrified to do anything.

And too terrified to fight back when Vanessa suddenly lunged, swiping the glass shard from the ghost's hands.

It all happened so fast, so fast that Luke only processed it after he had been thrown back onto the ground. Vanessa charged forward as Snatcher was frozen in fear, yanked the glass shard from his fingers, and thrust one hand through the air, sending a wave of ice easily ten feet tall to knock the three of them back, away from her. When his brain caught up he struggled to recover for a moment, trying to regain the wind that had been knocked out of him by the impact.

The burning anger in his chest had vanished in an instant, and it was replaced by a creeping, freezing feeling of pure, icy  _ dread. _

The blood rushing in his ears almost drowned out Hat Kid's cries as she grabbed his hand, helping to pull him to his feet. He felt coldly numb, barely able to keep his footing as he turned around, eyes blown wide as the ice wall began to pull back.

"V-Vanessa…? Vanessa, what are you doing?"

The princess lowered her head, puffs of freezing air clouding around her lips.  _ "I'm doing what I have to do...for you to stay with me." _

Luke couldn't breathe. No...no no no no no, he couldn't be wrong, she wouldn't...she…

"Y-you...you said you wouldn't let your powers get out of control!!"

_ "AND I WASN'T LYING." _

Luke's blood ran cold. His legs shook.

She hadn't been lying. She wouldn't lose control of her powers at all.

_ She planned to do all of this completely on purpose. _

Vanessa looked up, lips twisted in a wicked snarl.  _ "I wasn't lying...unlike YOU." _

"Wh... _ what?" _

_ "You said you would stay with me forever...YOU MADE A VOW ON OUR WEDDING DAY TO NEVER LEAVE MY SIDE!!!!!!!" _

"AND I HAVEN'T!!!! Vanessa-"

_ "BUT YOU WILL. I SAW IT!!!!!!" _

The color drained from Luke's face.  _ "...What?" _

_ "I lied to you. I didn't see Subcon's fall in my vision."  _

She growled, shadows spreading over the ground at her feet.  _ "I saw myself...as a monster. I saw people, frozen in ice, scattered around the manor. And I saw...you. Chained to the wall in the cellar. I saw a way to keep you with me forever. And then...I SAW YOU  _ **_GONE!!!!!!!!!"_ **

Luke cried out as a spike of ice sliced across his cheek, falling back as more of them burst from the ground around him.

_ "I knew you were going to leave...so I decided to do something about it. I wanted to keep the time piece in the cellar so that, when I found you gone, I could just rewind and bring you back. I could keep us together, like YOU PROMISED we would be...but THEN YOU HAD TO GO AND  _ **_BREAK IT!!!!!!"_ **

Another sharp spear of ice nearly skewered his head, and he rolled out of the way, getting to his feet and darting to the side to avoid another wave.

_ "And now...I have a NEW plan." _

She pulled the time piece from the bag on her shoulder, claws holding the glass shard she had swiped up until it clicked into place. There was only one hole left now.

**_"I'm going to finish this, take us back home, and make sure you'll never leave me again."_ **

She turned and raised her hand toward the broken bridge, running toward it as ice weaved into the empty spot, briefly connecting the two long enough for her to safely cross. Hat Kid ran after her, trying to catch up, but yelped as the ice began to collapse under her feet, quickly leaping back to safety as it crumbled completely, cutting off the two sides once more. Vanessa stopped just in front of the ice wall, looking over her shoulder.

Red and yellow eyes met.

Then she turned away, disappearing into the snow.

Hat Kid watched for a moment, still processing what had just happened, then darted back toward the duo of princes. Snatcher was just getting up, and Hat Kid rushed to his side, helping him the rest of the way. "Snatcher!! Are you ok?!"

"I'm fine, kiddo, I'm fine...I'm not blue, she can't hurt me...much."

The two of them turned at a light thump to see Luke had fallen to his knees, shoulders shaking as he stared wide-eyed at the ice wall. The shaking quickly spread over his entire body, one hand moving up to cup his bleeding cheek. The same cheek that bore the faintest remnants of a handprint.

No no no no no, she couldn't be…she...she was just being affected by the timeline like he was, she...she was just angry, it would pass...it would pass…...it………

He couldn't breathe.

He gripped his hair with both hands, curling forward until his forehead touched his knees, chest heaving for air and heart beating wildly in his chest. It was true. It was all true. She was going to murder the entire kingdom and chain him up in the basement and leave him to die and let him become a horrifying ghost and everyone he loved would be dead and-

_ "LUKE!!!" _

The kid's sudden voice shocked him out of his panicked thoughts so badly that he choked for a moment, only now becoming aware of how loudly he was wheezing. He hadn't experienced an anxiety attack since he was a child, but...this was definitely the type of situation that would result in one. He jumped as he felt Hat Kid's hand on his back, trying to regain control of his breathing. In for 3...out for 3…

When he stopped wheezing as badly, he heard Hat Kid's voice again. "Are you ok…?"

It took all the energy he had left to nod, and Hat Kid sighed in relief, looking back up.

Just in time to see Snatcher morphing back into his normal form, heading toward the tree house.

She started after him, cape billowing behind her. "H-hey!! Snatcher, where are you going?!"

"Home. I've got books to read."

"You can't go, you have to help us!! We can't take her on alone!"

_ "You can, and you will." _

Hat Kid stopped, stamping one foot on the ground in annoyance. "But what about Luke?! Don't you care what happens to your past self?!"

"Kiddo, you've explained it to me before. I never found a time piece in my past, so he's in an entirely new timeline. I  _ don't  _ care what happens to him, because it  _ doesn't  _ affect me."

"You...are you really that selfish?!"

_ "YES!!!!"  _ Snatcher finally roared, turning and slamming a claw into the ground next to the alien girl.  _ "I AM THAT SELFISH!!!! I SPENT CENTURIES TRYING TO BURY MY PAST, AND I'M NOT LETTING IT CRAWL OUT OF THE GRAVE NOW. I AM NOT LUKE, THAT MAN IS  _ _ DEAD _ _ , AND I'M GOING TO LET HIM DIE LIKE HE'S SUPPOSED TO." _

Without waiting for an answer, the ghost swiveled around and lunged into the ground, disappearing into the earth. Hat Kid bit her lip, then stamped her foot, letting out an angry cry as she stormed back toward Luke. "UGH!!! The nerve of that guy!!! He's just insufferable sometimes!!"

She looked down at him, face falling a bit when he didn't move. "...Luke?"

He sighed softly, then slowly got to his feet, staring down at his hands. Gentle embers flickered at the tips of his fingers for a moment.

"...I'm...I'll be ok. I knew it was going to come to a head eventually. I just……didn't want to believe it."

He turned to face her, wincing as the burn on his arm stung in protest. "We need to find her. Quickly. When I first accepted my place as successor to the throne, I made a vow to protect my kingdom, no matter what. And if it means going against the woman I love...then so be it."

Hat Kid shifted, rubbing her arm. "I don't think she's gonna give it up without a fight, though...are you sure you can do this?"

Luke smiled, and it was a sad, albeit warm smile. "Yes. I'm sure. I...I'll try to convince her to come around. She can be stubborn, but if anyone can get through to her, it's me. Now, let's go back to the ship and get prepared. We have a kingdom to save."

~~

The manor loomed above, glaring down at Vanessa, but it didn't frighten her. Not anymore.

She had accepted her future now.

The statues were quickly dispatched, now encased in a thick layer of ice, and she climbed the stairs, feet never once slipping on the frosted surface. With a wave of her hand, the snow was blown away from the front doors, and she approached, adjusting the bag on her shoulder as she raised a fist.

Her knock echoed louder than any noise ever could.

In no time at all, monstrous footsteps came stomping to the first floor, and the doors were flung open to reveal a familiar face, one she'd only seen once in a vision.

**_"WHO DARES APPRO-"_ ** Queen Vanessa stopped in her tracks, eternal rage brought to a screeching halt as she gazed down upon her younger self.

The princess chuckled. "It's like looking into a mirror, isn't it?"

The queen was silent.

"...I know what happened to you. To  _ us.  _ I know how our beloved prince  _ betrayed _ us."

The queen growled, and shadowy claws scratched a new hole in the wallpaper next to her.

"And I have a plan. A plan to keep him with me...and a plan to return him to  _ you." _

**_"...I am listening."_ **

The princess reached into her bag and pulled out the time piece, gesturing to the hole in it. "I'm looking for the last piece of this. Once it is complete, it will send my prince and I back to our original timeline, and I can take protective measures to ensure he never leaves again."

**_"And what of MY prince?"_ **

Vanessa smiled as if she had just received a mediocre Christmas present. She removed the bag from her shoulder, and opened it.

The glow of the four time pieces she stole from the ship illuminated the inside of the bag.

"You can use these to rewind time, back to before he escaped. We can both have the happily ever after we always dreamed of."

Queen Vanessa paused, moving one claw over the bag, letting the glow shine over her fingers.

**_"...I accept."_ **

~~

Luke twirled the umbrella in his hand, opening and closing it. It had been a wedding gift from his mother, the outer canopy dark green and patterned with bright green, thorny vines, and the inner canopy a pastel red, though it was nearly drowned through the plethora of stylized roses. It had been a gift to symbolize his and Vanessa's union, to symbolize their love for eachother.

And now he was preparing to use it as a weapon against her.

It didn't take long for him to get the hang of using it, Hat Kid was obviously very experienced in the craft, with her umbrella being her weapon of choice. Trying to fight through his injuries was another story.

He winced and clutched his now bandaged arm as it throbbed with pain, nearly dropping the umbrella. "Kiddo, I think this is enough training...if my arm gets any worse, I won't be able to use this thing at all."

The girl nodded, then winced a bit. "Peck, you really do sound just like him when you call me that. How'd I not see it sooner?"

"Probably because I'm way nicer than him."

Hat Kid giggled, hurrying over to the telescope in her bedroom and peering through it. "Alright, so she headed toward the manor, and it doesn't look like she came back across the bridge. Weird...if she's looking for the last piece, why's she still there?"

Luke paused. He hadn't thought about that, she had seemed very intent on heading to the manor. He'd already found the piece that was there, so she didn't have any reason to go there...unless…

His eyes widened as the horrible realization struck him. "She...she's going to team up with herself. We could handle one of her, but two…"

Hat Kid turned toward him suddenly, flashing a confident grin. "Then we'll just have to make it a fair fight!"

~~

"I already  _ told you _ , kiddo, I am  _ NOT HELPING YOU." _

Snatcher raised his book to his face, moving it to block his view of Hat Kid as she tried to make eye contact with him. "Come on, Snatcher, we can't fight them on our own!! We need your help!"

"And why should I help you? Give me one good reason I should risk my afterlife fighting not one, but TWO versions of my insane ex girlfriend for a guy I hate whose safety doesn't affect me at all!"

"...Because you want to."

Both Hat Kid and Snatcher turned as Luke spoke up, smiling a bit. "No matter how much you try to deny it, you're still good at heart. You calmed down and told me the truth when you saw me upset, instead of just letting me break down completely. You still care about me. And if I were you, which I am, and I was very angry about all of this, I would take any opportunity I could get to dispense justice. You know all about that, don't you? But you haven't gotten your justice against her yet. So there's two reasons."

Snatcher was silent for a moment. Then he scowled, burying his face in the book once again. "What are you, my psychiatrist? I know you're way too into law to be a psychiatrist."

Hat Kid looked hopeful. "So does that mean you'll help us?"

"Of course not!! What part of what I said indicated I would help you?!"

Luke shook his head and Hat Kid groaned, storming out of the tree.  _ "Fine!!  _ I'll just go and fight her and die and never see you again!!"

She hopped off of the vine onto dry land and started down the path.

"...Ugh, dammit, wait a minute!!"

The duo turned around as Snatcher put his book down, floating up from his chair and crossing his arms as he made his way after them. "Don't you even  _ think  _ about saying anything. She doesn't deserve the honor of killing you, that's reserved for me and me only!"

"...Sooo does that mean you'll help us?"

Snatcher looked to be on the edge of a migraine. He let out a deep and exaggerated sigh, rubbing his temples. "For the love of... _ yes, fine, I will help you." _

Hat Kid cheered, jumping in place, and Luke smiled up at the ghost. "Thank you."

"Oh god, ew, don't smile at me like that, your gratitude is making my headache worse."

Luke chuckled, turning to Hat Kid. "So...are we ready to go?"

Hat Kid nodded, grinning as she propped her umbrella on her shoulder. "Let's go crush some ice!!!"

She started forward, eagerly running down the path, before she was swiped up in a ghostly claw.

"Not so fast, kiddo. You guys move WAY too slow."

He lifted the child up and set her on his back, then lowered himself down, looking down at Luke. "...Well? You coming? You idiots don't have all day."

Luke blinked away his awe, then chuckled, climbing onto the spirit's back and gripping onto the fluff around his neck for stability. "Y'know, of all the crazy things I've done in the past three days, riding the future ghost version of myself to fight my wife for an hourglass has to take the cake."

"Believe me, if you continue down the same path I did, it'll get crazier."

Snatcher raised himself back up into the air. "Now hang on tight, because I'm not slowing down if one of you falls off!"

Luke pressed himself close to the ghost's back as he took off, quickly weaving through the trees. He looked over the side as the forest flew by, eyes widening a bit as he saw the many dwellers and Subconites that had gathered near the path, watching them go.

Almost as if they were sending him off.

When they crossed the bridge he shuddered, pressing closer to Snatcher's neck fur as he slowed down. Seemed like he felt the same tense atmosphere Luke did. They slowly floated through the hole in the ice barrier, and Luke looked over his side again, staring into the glacial wall. Now that he looked closer, he could almost see what he didn't want to identify as bodies, trapped deep in the ice for all eternity. He swallowed roughly and buried his face in his arms.

When Snatcher stopped completely, he looked up, dread twisting in his gut as he looked up at the frozen manor. That would be his future if they didn't stop Vanessa.

Hat Kid hopped off and Luke followed, gripping the umbrella in his hands as he looked his former home up and down. The lights were off. Hadn't they been on before?

Something sank in his chest, and he kneeled down, putting a hand on the kid's shoulder. "Hey...Hat Kid."

She looked up at him and he smiled, letting their gazes meet. "Thank you. For taking care of us, for helping us through all the hardships we faced. And thank you for taking care of Snatcher. I don't think both of us would be where we are today without you. You're really a remarkable young lady, you know that?"

She beamed and he sighed a bit, smile fading. "Listen...I want you to promise me something. No matter what happens, if...something happens to me, you'll stay strong. Promise me you won't lose hope, that you won't stop believing there is good in the world."

Hat Kid's eyes widened. "Hey--don't talk like that!! You say that as if you're gonna-!"

The front doors of the manor rattled, and Luke looked down at Hat Kid in a silent plea. She stared up at him, then swallowed and nodded.

"I promise."

Luke flashed her a soft smile, then stood up as the doors to the manor opened.

And red eyes met yellow once more.

He felt Snatcher flinch by his side, but never looked away from Vanessa, knuckles white as he gripped the umbrella tightly. The princess smiled, starting down the stairs with slow, calculated steps.

"My dearest prince...have you finally come to your senses? I don't think you have, that  _ alien  _ is still by your side."

Luke grit his teeth, instinctively shifting in front of Hat Kid.

"Vanny, I don't want to fight you. I just want to talk."

She laughed, and the sound that would normally put Luke at ease sent chills down his spine.

"Of course you don't, I don't either! But I'll do what I have to do to keep you by my side."

Something else appeared behind her in the doorway, and Luke's jaw dropped with horror as the monster revealed itself.

The beast was shrouded in shadows, as if she sucked all light from the area around her, except for the haunting glow of two brilliant red eyes, peering out from an unkempt mop of hair. Just looking at her made Luke's blood run cold, and he swallowed, bringing the umbrella up in front of himself defensively. 

The beast known as Queen Vanessa stared him down for a moment, then her gaze drifted to Snatcher, claws flexing in anticipation.

**_"My prince...you've been here this whole time, haven't you?"_ **

Snatcher's own claws twitched, and he stiffened, tail lashing back and forth. "...I'm not him anymore. Your prince is gone. He disappeared back in that cellar you let me die in."

**_"Don't be silly, my prince...I know how to bring you back to me."_ **

She removed something from her shoulder that had been hidden in her shadowy coat, setting the bag just inside the door of the manor. Hat Kid gasped when she saw the glow of time pieces inside the bag, gripping onto the hem of Luke's shirt. "Th-those are time pieces!! She...she's gonna turn back time to bring Snatcher back to life!"

Luke glanced up for a moment, and it was horrifying to see Snatcher look so distraught, the ghost's hands shaking at the mere thought of being dragged back into the world of the living. This wasn't just the prince's battle anymore.

Vanessa reached the bottom of the stairs, hands curling into fists by her sides. "Now, my prince...are we going to do this the easy way, or  _ the hard way?" _

The snow swirled around them, the breeze howling through the clearing. Luke swallowed, legs tensed, readying his umbrella as heat gathered around his fingers.

This was it.

When he didn't respond, she sighed, looking back at the time piece that had brought them here, sitting on the porch of the manor.

"Alright... **_the hard way it is, then."_ **

Her eyes flashed a brilliant red and she thrust one clawed hand out, sending a barrage of icicles jutting out from the ground toward Luke. He yelped and leapt to the side, flames swirling around his hand until the fireball shot toward her, though it was quickly blocked with a thick wall of ice.

Queen Vanessa shrieked and charged forward, lunging for Snatcher only to receive an umbrella to the face. She swiped at the alien girl assaulting her, but Snatcher returned the favor, knocking the monstrous queen to the side with a blast of energy.

Luke blocked another icy attack with his own umbrella, calling out to the enraged princess.  _ "VANESSA!!!  _ Please, you need to stop this!! Look at what you've become!!!"

_ "I don't CARE WHAT I AM, AS LONG AS I HAVE YOU!!!"  _ she screamed, leaping toward him with claws outstretched. He closed the umbrella and swung it, knocking her to the side, and opened it again just in time to block a gust of freezing sleet. 

"Don't you realize that what you're letting yourself become is driving me away from you?! If you would just listen to me, and let me think on my own and act on my own, I would be more inclined to stay!!"

The snow under his feet turned to ice and he closed his eyes, a wave of embers quickly sweeping down his legs to melt it and free himself. He ducked as she dove for him again, bringing the umbrella up to block her as she spun around to attack again, clawing at him as he readied another fireball.

"You can't claim this is love when you love  _ having _ me, not  _ me!!" _

**_"STOP LYING TO ME!!!!!!!!!"_ **

~~

"I'm not lying! I really can do it!"

Luke looked down at the river in front of him, then across it at his friend Vanessa. The young girl stuck her tongue out at him, fiddling with the rose pin in her hair. "Oh yeah? Then prove it! Prove you can jump across that river!"

"I will!!" Luke beamed at her, looking back into the water and steadying himself. Dad was gonna  _ kill _ him if he let his hair get wet, it was always a pain to dry out, but he had committed to his boasting by this point. They were supposed to be playing in the castle gardens, but Vanessa had wanted to explore the forest beyond the ravine, so Luke managed to sneak them both across the bridge and into the lush forest. There were no paths, so they stuck close to the ravine, and ended up in a clearing with a pond in the middle, and a decently sized river leading into it. 

Vanessa put her hand on her hip, smiling brightly at him. "Well? What are you waiting for, do it for me!"

"Alright, alright, I'm going to!" He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, bouncing on his feet a bit before finally taking a running start.

And he jumped.

~~

He landed just out of range of the ice spearing through the ground, swiping a hand through the air to send a wave of fire toward the princess. She instinctively raised a hand to shield herself from it and cried out as her arm took the hit, falling back onto the snow.

_ "KID!!!!" _

Luke turned at Snatcher's cry, eyes widening when he saw Queen Vanessa holding Hat Kid in the air by her neck, the alien girl kicking her legs furiously as ice began to spread over her skin. He turned on his heel to rush over and help, but Snatcher already had him covered, barrelling into the queen and knocking Hat Kid out of her hands.

He sighed in relief, and turned around just in time to be slammed into the ground himself, quickly raising his arms to block her as Vanessa tore at him. He bit back a scream of pain as her claws sliced into his forearm, working one leg up and kicking outward to dislodge her.

_ "Vanessa, PLEASE!!!  _ I'm not going to just sit here and let you hurt me and the people I love!! This has to  _ stop!!!" _

_ "AND WHAT ABOUT ME?!?! DON'T YOU LOVE ME?!?!" _

He grimaced and attacked, stretching his good arm out to send a torrent of flames towards her. This time she saw it coming, raising a slab of ice like a shield and kicking it towards him. He couldn't stop in time and fell back with a yell as his own flames seared into his forearm, raising the umbrella and opening it to knock her back as she pounced, giving him enough time to scramble to his feet.

"I love the Vanessa that would bake cookies for all the children that came to visit, and the Vanessa that would dance with me under the moonlight after a stressful day!!  _ You're not the Vanessa I love anymore!!" _

For a moment that seemed to get through to her, and she stopped, breathing hard as she looked at her hands.

_ "N-no...no,  _ **_DON'T LOOK AT ME!!!!!"_ **

~~

Luke yelped as his vision went white, prying the thrown blanket from his face and shielding his eyes with a laugh. "I know, I know, bad luck and all!"

He lowered his hand, letting his eyes travel up the white wedding dress his fiance Vanessa wore. "But y'know...I just get so impatient! I wanted nothing more than to see my soon to be wife, can you blame me?"

She chuckled, walking over to him and taking his hands with a smile. "So...are you ready to properly become my prince?"

He leaned forward, placing a kiss on her forehead. "Absolutely. I've never been more ready in my life."

Vanessa sighed softly, then reached up, flicking his undone tie with one hand. "Are you sure about that, Mr. 'I won't tie my tie on my wedding day'?"

He sputtered out a laugh, patting her shoulder before heading out of the room.

And the snow outside crunched underneath his feet.

~~

He winced as the sound made Vanessa flinch, slowly approaching her. "Vanessa…?"

Of course he fell for it.

He cried out as icicles sliced across his legs, nearly falling backward again, but catching himself with the umbrella. His eyes widened and he raised it in front of him as more icicles flew towards him, standing his ground as they battered the outer canopy.

Until one tore through.

The icicles began spearing through and getting stuck in the fabric of the umbrella, slowly shredding it as he was forced backward by the barrage. More of the sharp icicles burst from the ground behind him until he was backed up against a large one, fire beginning to build between his hands.

One of the icicles tore through the umbrella and sliced through his side.

And something snapped.

He let out a roar and moved the umbrella, an enormous ball of fire searing through the icicles and sending Vanessa diving out of the way to avoid being incinerated.

He threw the destroyed umbrella away, eyes pulsing yellow. "I didn't want to believe it...I loved you too much, I didn't want to believe you were hurting me... _ but now I'm DONE TRYING TO JUSTIFY WHAT YOU'RE DOING. You're talking about  _ **_MURDERING YOUR ENTIRE KINDGOM, FOR FUCK'S SAKE!!!!_ ** _ I'M DONE BEING AFRAID OF WHAT YOU'LL DO IF I SO MUCH AS THINK ABOUT DOING SOMETHING FOR MYSELF!!!!!  _ **_I'M DONE LETTING YOU CONTROL ME!!!!!"_ **

As abruptly as it had come, his rage faded, leaving a deep, aching hole in his heart. "I'm done...trying to stop you. I'm done feeling like it's my responsibility to keep you happy. I'm done…"

The blast of icy wind caught him completely off guard. He was thrown backwards, hitting the large icicle with enough force to break it off, skidding across the ground with a strained wheeze of agony. The exhaustion of running and the pain of his injuries was finally catching up to him, and he could barely get to his feet, using all of his strength to stay standing.

But Vanessa was still fighting.

Her silhouette appeared through the fog, then tore through, charging toward him for one final leap, teeth bared, claws outstretched to rip him to pieces.

And time seemed to slow.

He looked over her face, over  _ her _ . Her dress was ripped and torn, her hair was a tangled mess, slowly turning a deep black, her claws were tipped with his own blood. And her face…

There was nothing left of the Vanessa he once loved in her eyes. He could finally see it now. There was no saving her.

He accepted his future.

There was no time to dodge, nothing to block her with. He was far too exhausted to fight back anymore.

He felt his hand close around something cold.

And she was upon him.

…

The wind howled around the duo, snow falling quietly, ever so quietly. It was a stillness and coldness Luke had always feared.

He slowly opened his eyes.

And looked up.

~~

Luke yelped as he hit the ground on the other side of the river, one leg splashing in the water. It was far too cold for his liking, and he pulled his leg out with a squeal, scrambling all the way onto the shore with Vanessa's help. "See!! I told you I could do it!"

"You didn't do it, your leg got wet!"

"But the other eighty percent of me is dry, and that's at least a B!"

Vanessa giggled, then sighed, her smile fading. "Hey...Luke. Do you like me?"

Luke blinked, trying to will away the blush rising to his cheeks. "Wh-y-yeah! D...do you mean like... _ like  _ like?"

The girl didn't answer, fiddling with the pin in her hair again. "I just feel like...like I'm boring. You do all this cool stuff, you snuck us into the forest, you could swing around all the trees and jump across a river, and I'm just...just a perfect little princess. You don't think I'm boring?"

The young prince paused for a moment, thinking. "...Well, I don't think you're boring. You can dance, and you can sing, and you can do that cool ice stuff!"

"I can make tiny snowflakes."

"Yeah, and I can't do that! I'm gonna learn fire magic one day, I won't be able to make ice sculptures or make it snow or cool things like that!"

Vanessa giggled at the pun, swinging her arms a bit. "So...you're not gonna leave me?"

Luke shook his head. "Nope! Not ever!"

He took her hands, and she looked up at him, scarlet eyes twinkling a bit.

"You wanna practice our wedding vows?"

"Wh-it's gonna be like a million years before we have to say them, why practice now?"

"Just for fun! Plus we gotta know them if we're gonna be legally married, I read about that in one of the textbooks Dad got me!"

The princess squeezed his hands, shifting in place. "Well...I only remember one of them."

"Really? Which one?"

Vanessa looked back up into his eyes, a smile as sparkly as icicles stretching across her face.

"Till death do us part!"

~~

Luke swallowed as he stood on the altar, adjusting his tie as his bride to be walked down the aisle. He had known this would happen since he was a child, but it felt so much different actually being here, joy making his heart pound in his chest as he let his gaze follow her all the way up to her own place on the altar. She looked up at him through her veil, stifling a giggle. "You got someone to help with your tie, didn't you?"

"Why is that important?"

"You're avoiding the question."

He chuckled, slipping his hands into hers as the priest began to speak. He would have listened, but the pull of her smile, the alluring sparkle in her crimson eyes, drew away all his attention. He could stay like this for hours, memorizing every detail of her face.

"...Luke?"

He focused back in at her whisper, blinking a bit. "Yes, dear?"

"I know you know all of the legally binding stuff, but...I want to hear it from you, not from the script you've memorized. Do you promise to stay with me?"

Luke paused, then smiled. "Of course, Vanny."

She smiled, then glanced away as the priest looked to her. It was time to say her vows.

Vanessa looked back up at Luke, a smile as white as snow spreading across her face.

"I, Princess Vanessa, take thee, Prince Luke, to be my wedded husband. To have and to hold, from this day forward...for better, for worse...for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health...to love and to cherish…"

"Till death do us part."

~~

Luke blinked as he stared up at Vanessa, frozen above him, blood dripping from her lips. Her raised hand twitched, claws inches away from his face, and her eyes slowly drifted down.

To the icicle stabbed straight through her chest.

Luke didn't even remember doing it himself. He remembered picking up the broken icicle as if through a different person, watching as he had pointed it forward just as Vanessa barrelled into him, impaling herself on it as a result.

Did he do that?

...Why did he do that?

He felt Vanessa's legs wobble, and her eyelids drooped, her gaze sliding slowly,  _ too slowly _ , back up to his face.

She wheezed out a laugh, sucking in a weak breath, a smile as cold as ice tearing across her face.

_ "...Till death...do us part." _

His fingers remained locked around the icicle as her grip on him relaxed, and he fell on his back, pulling the offending object out of her chest in the process. She swayed on her feet, then one leg buckled and she pitched forward, the sounds of the others still fighting miniscule compared to the thud as she hit the ground. She was bleeding.

She was dying.

Luke let go of the icicle, tired limbs screaming as he crawled toward her, a haze settling over his mind. He didn't want this he didn't want this  _ he didn't want this HE DIDN'T WANT TO DO THIS. _

He gingerly lifted her from the snow and cradled her in his arms, one shaking hand hovering over the hole in her chest, oblivious to the blood slowly soaking into his jeans. He looked down at his hand, shaking horribly, staring at the scarlet liquid dripping between his fingers.  _ Her blood was on his hands. _

His lungs refused to take in air, and he mouthed her name at first, unable to speak, then managed to find his voice as he noticed her eyes still moving. She was still alive.

_ "V-Vanny…?  _ Vanny……Vanny, I-I……I didn't…I didn't m-..." he choked out, one shivering hand moving up to touch her cheek.

_ "I…I know……I know...you didn't, my…my pr-........Luke." _

Her head lolled to the side and she giggled, quietly sputtering through a mouthful of blood for a moment.  _ "......But…you had to. I…I see that now. There was no...avoiding this……" _

Luke couldn't feel his heart beating as she reached up, one hand limply drifting across his cheek, caressing the healing gash she had caused.  _ "It's funny...how things……come into perspective so...so quickly. I couldn't see...how I was hurting you before……I was only thinking about...myself...and what I wanted...I knew I was in the wrong...but I didn't...care…" _

The snow seemed to stop in midair, the whole world around them frozen in time as she looked up at him.  _ "I don't expect...forgiveness. I don't deserve it. But……I'm sorry. I'm sorry for...the way I treated you. You didn't deserve that...you deserve someone who...who will treat you like……like Luke. Not just a prince…" _

There was a flash of irritation in her eyes, but it quickly settled into acceptance, as if she had remembered something and quickly come to terms with it.  _ "What about...that florist? I never wanted to...to admit it, but……she would make a fine princess...don't you think?" _

Something dripped down onto Vanessa's cheek, and Luke suddenly became distinctly aware that he was crying. He couldn't move, he couldn't breathe, lips curling into a grimace as tears slid down his cheeks. "Vanny, no...no no no, please, please don't...p-please don't go, please…"

_ "It's ok……I've accepted my future. But you...you need to continue on. Not for me...for Subcon. They're going to need you, Luke……they're going to need  _ _ their _ _ prince." _

She chuckled, her eyes slowly beginning to gloss over.  _ "...I still think...a lawyer prince sounds a bit silly……but...what about a lawyer king?" _

Luke sobbed, but couldn't help the small smile that lit up his face, a tiny warmth in the cold closing in on them both. "I……I think a l-lawyer king...sounds amazing. D-do you really think I can do it…?"

Vanessa smiled. It was a smile so different than what he was used to, a smile completely void of the malice he had refused to acknowledge. The last time he had seen that smile was when they were kids, and the final time he would see it was in front of the frozen manor, her blood seeping into the snow around them.

_ "I  _ _ know _ _ you can…and I know you will. I foolishly had doubts...about your ability to...fit into my perception of a prince……but I never had doubts...about your ability to rule. You've always been a fine leader……always trying to stay peaceful...but you've never been afraid to...use force when necessary. I know your brain didn't want to do this, but……I think your heart knew...you had to. To save Subcon…" _

Her eyelids began to droop and Luke's heart skipped a beat, a fresh wave of tears blurring his vision as he held her face in one hand. "No-no no no no, wait,  _ wait you can't go yet-PLEASE DON'T GO YET!!!" _

He leaned forward, pressing his forehead to hers, mumbling through his sobs. "Please...please don't go, I……I love you…"

_ "I...I love you too…I'm sorry I didn't realize it until now..."  _

The light began to fade from her eyes and she reached up, bloody fingers trailing over the crown shaped decal on his shirt. A single puff of icy breath left her lips.

_ "...Goodbye……King Luke…" _

Her hand fell, slowly, limply, coming to rest on the snow below.

And she was cold.

Luke could barely stay upright as he shook her gently, eyes widening with horror. "V-Vanessa?!  _ VANESSA?!?! VANESSA PLEASE, PLEASE WAKE UP, I'M NOT READY FOR YOU TO GO YET, PLEASE!!!!!!" _

The corpse in his arms gave no response. His hands trembled, and he held her close to his chest, embers spreading over his shoulders.  _ "No no no no NO NO NO NO, please I-I didn't mean to, I didn't mean to, I...I…" _

A heat burned in his chest, hotter than he'd ever felt before, swirling and growing as she grew colder in his arms. He could hear a tune from somewhere unknown as the fire whispered to him, the flame in his chest burning brighter and brighter until he felt he would be cooked alive, whirling around him until it engulfed him completely. He grit his teeth, squeezing his eyes shut.

His mournful wail echoed around the clearing.

The sound made the other three stop in their tracks completely, even Queen Vanessa, turning just as a bright orange flame erupted around the prince, spreading over the ground in a shock wave that made Hat Kid's hat fly off and Snatcher's arms shoot up to shield himself from the light. When it faded, the snow all around him had melted, and the flames died down to reveal Luke, kneeled on the ground, curled over the body of his former wife.

Hat Kid's hands flew to her mouth in horror, and Snatcher felt something within his soul ache, the will to fight suddenly being sucked out of him.

Queen Vanessa seemed to feel it too, the shadows billowing around her slowing to a crawl, the glow of her eyes dying down to only a faint red light. She made no move to attack anymore, just staring across the clearing at her own body, drained of life.

Hat Kid was the first to move, running across the clearing and slowing to a tentative crawl as she approached the grieving prince, holding her hat between her hands. "...Sh…she's……she's dead."

Snatcher followed much more slowly, hands trembling slightly as he watched himself break down, tail instinctively starting to shift into legs as he lowered himself down to the ground. For a moment, the two just watched, letting him mourn in silence.

Then, there were footsteps behind them.

Snatcher and Hat Kid whipped around to see that Queen Vanessa had walked up behind them, her head down as she stared at the stone path beneath her feet. It had been so long, she'd forgotten there was even a path there.

"...Wh-what?"

The queen only glanced over at Snatcher's query, then shifted, pulling something from what appeared to be a pocket in her dress, one gnarled claw extending out to the ghost.

In her palm, a single piece of glass sparkled like ice.

Hat Kid's eyes widened, but she didn't move. "The last piece…"

Snatcher refused to move for a moment, then slowly reached out, suddenly swiping the piece from her hand and backing away in case she tried to grab him. She didn't, and she pulled her hand back, turning and walking silently back toward the manor.

She disappeared inside, and a bag was thrown from the doorway, landing with a crunch in the snow still on the porch. The stolen time pieces.

The doors closed, and more snow swept over the entrance to the manor, covering it just as it had before. So it  _ had _ been placed there on purpose.

Hat Kid slowly walked up and picked up the bag, then collected the broken time piece from the porch, slipping it into the bag and keeping the glass piece in her pocket. Luke could use that when he was ready to.

When she walked back over, Luke was still and silent, unmoving, even as the snow fell around him, slowly beginning to cover what he had melted away. The girl winced, quietly approaching him and setting a hand on his shoulder. "Luke…? Luke……we've gotta go. You'll freeze out here…"

For a long moment, she got no response. Then the prince shifted Vanessa in his arms and slowly stood, walking toward the hole in the ice barrier. Not once did he look back at the manor.

It was a slow procession, Hat Kid and Snatcher following silently behind, yet time seemed to pass so quickly, and all too soon they were at the broken bridge. Snatcher sighed and shifted back into his normal form, gently lifting the prince into his arms and setting him down on the opposite side of the bridge.

Luke paused, and looked up. The dwellers and Subconites had gathered around, watching silently, some lowering their heads or looking away. He let his head fall back down, and continued to walk.

Subcon Village was silent, and the many dwellers parted as he stepped into the clearing. They already knew where he was going.

He walked up to the empty bonfire, listening to the faint whispers for a moment, then leaned down, laying Vanessa on top of the burnt logs. He folded her arms over the hole in her chest and stepped back, looking at her silently for a moment.

There was a tug on the hem of his shirt. He looked down at the subconite standing next to him, and she held up her hands. Nestled between them was a bright orange flower, plucked from the burnt side of the forest. He blinked, then leaned down, cupping his hands around the flower and standing up as she backed off, placing it down over her hands.

For the last time, she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen.

He stepped back and raised his hand, a small flame sparking in his palm. With a flick of his wrist, the flame landed at the base of the bonfire, and began to spread upward, encasing the fallen princess in a brilliant blue flame. Luke felt his knees begin to shake, and let himself sink down, sitting on the ground. The fire crackled, then he felt two more shapes, one identical to his own, and one much smaller, settle down on either side of him.

The three of them sat and watched the bonfire.

Hat Kid was the first to speak up, placing her hand on Luke's knee. "Hey, Luke?"

When he gave no response, she continued. "I'm...not real good at this stuff, but...I think you're gonna be ok. It's like when you get a cut, it hurts a lot and it's bad and bleeds, but...if you treat it right, it'll heal eventually. Whenever I get a cut and I go to Cooking Cat, she says that we're all gonna hurt at some point in our lives, for better or for worse. But we gotta hold our heads up high and be strong, otherwise what's the point? You've still got a kingdom to go back to, you still have family and friends, and they all care about you. And they'll all help you be strong and heal. So...you can get one of your favorite band-aids--mine are these ones with little green aliens on them--and put some medicine on it, and put it on the cut. And it'll start to heal."

Luke looked over, eyes heavy with the weight of his guilt. He looked down at his left forearm, at the still bleeding claw marks. They hurt. But she was right. They may leave scars, but with time and care, they would heal. He could heal.

"...Hey."

He turned to face Snatcher, the ghost's hands folded in his lap, yellow eyes glowing along with the fire. "...What did she say to you?"

Luke let his own eyes drift to the fire, watching it burn in silence for a moment.

"...She told me to continue on. She told me she was sorry, and she needed me to continue on for the sake of Subcon. And...she said I would make a great king."

"Well, I hate to admit it...but she was right. Even if they're all dead, my people still need me. Whether I'm Luke or Snatcher, they still need me. And so do yours. Subcon needs a king like you."

Luke looked at Snatcher, and for a brief moment, their eyes looked exactly the same. They had both been hurt, albeit Snatcher much more severely, but even so, he had learned to heal in his own way. He had learned to change, and move on, and adapt to his new world. Perhaps he wasn't the best example, but...it was a start.

He smiled, fingers tracing over the crown pattern on his bloodied shirt. "King Luke...it has a nice ring to it, don't you think?"

Hat Kid nodded. "Yeah! Luke is a really good king name!"

Luke chuckled, reaching over to ruffle her hair a bit.

"...Do you regret doing it?"

Luke barely caught Snatcher's whisper, his smile fading as he looked up to the smoke billowing up from the fire. "...That's a tough question. I...I regret it. But if I had a chance to go back and stop myself...I wouldn't. She was right...it had to be done to ensure Subcon's survival."

"There was no other way to stop her?" Hat Kid asked, and Luke shook his head.

"No, there wasn't. I know her, now that I've accepted that I do. She...she wasn't a good person. I probably shouldn't even be mourning her now. That moment of clarity she had...she never would have had that in any other situation. She was too stubborn, and focused only on what she wanted, and...it was only when her actions had permanent and direct consequences to herself that she realized what she was doing. You've seen this timeline, even my death didn't stop her from turning into a monster. She was doomed no matter what...and I was the only one able to stop her."

Luke glanced down at his hands, at the drying bloodstains on his fingers. "...So I did what I had to."

"...But...why did you only realize now that she was being so mean to you?"

A sad smile spread across Luke's face, and he sighed. "I was in love with her, kiddo. Love makes you blind to a lot of things."

Snatcher scoffed, laying on his back on the ground. "Ain't that the truth."

"You were me once too, don't you scoff at me."

"I've got about three or four centuries on you, buddy, cry all you want."

Luke couldn't help but chuckle, and the three of them sat in silence for a moment.

"What are you gonna do when you get home, Luke?"

"...Well, I'll have to inform Subcon of Princess Vanessa's passing...it may be taken to a court of law, but...I think these injuries and these clothes are enough to prove my story is true. And...I wasn't sure what, but I knew she was hiding something from me. I'm quite certain it was her ice powers. She would disappear into the study for hours at a time, and refuse to let me in. And when I was allowed in afterward, it was always quite cold in the room. Perhaps she was studying to make them stronger. As if...she had planned to freeze Subcon all along. I'm sure if that's the truth, the court will understand why I had to do what I did."

Hat Kid nodded, fiddling with the edge of her cape. "Subcon Kingdom seems like a really nice place."

"Besides  _ her,  _ I still remember how nice it was." Snatcher piped up, staring up into the stars. "We rarely ever had bad weather and we had tons of celebrations and the crime rate was damn abysmal, and that part stayed the same until you came along."

"Heyyy!!!"

"You single handedly raised Subcon Forest's crime rate by like...double what it was."

"Says the ghost who was the sole reason there was any crime in the first place."

"You wound me, Hat Brat."

The forest went quiet once more. Luke closed his eyes, letting the fire talk to him, quietly listening to its whispers. It had become a comforting sound, its soft tune easing his worries. He had to keep the fire within him burning. He had to stay strong, to stay bright. For his people. For Subcon Kingdom.

He had to go home.

He stayed sitting by the fire, telling his own stories and listening to Hat Kid and Snatcher's adventures, until the flames had died out completely. Once the last of the embers were gone, he stood, staring at the ashes that remained.

There was a tap on his shoulder, and he turned to look at Snatcher, eyes sliding down to the empty glass vial in his hand. The ghost nodded in understanding.

Luke smiled and took it, walking over to the fire and collecting the ashes in the vial. A last memento of the woman he used to love.

When he turned back, Hat Kid had already pulled out the broken time piece and the last shard of glass, hesitating a bit before holding them out to him. Luke took them from her, ruffling her hair one last time.

He stood up, inspecting the time piece, then jumped a bit as something hit his legs. He looked down to see Hat Kid hugging him, her face buried in his thigh, sniffling a bit.

"I-I'm gonna miss you…"

Luke paused, then smiled, blinking away his own tears as he set down the hourglass and leaned down, lifting the girl into his arms and holding her close to his chest. "I'll miss you too, kiddo…"

He opened his eyes, and his gaze met Snatcher's. A silent plea.

Snatcher groaned, lowering his head in defeat. "Fine, fine…"

He walked over and joined the hug, wrapping his arms around both of them. Luke couldn't stop the happy grin that brightened his face, stroking Hat Kid's hair with one hand. It had only been three days, but...he really didn't want to let go.

Eventually, Snatcher pulled back and Luke reluctantly leaned down, setting the alien girl back down on the ground and picking up the time piece once more. He spun the glass shard between his fingers for a moment, then glanced down at the glass vial of ashes, hooked into his belt. He knew the time piece wouldn't bring her back. No matter how much he wanted it to, he understood that it shouldn't. 

He looked back up, at Hat Kid, as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "Kiddo...you're gonna do great things, ok? I can tell. You'll be able to overcome anything the world throws at you. No matter how many little alien band-aids you need, you'll be strong. Right?"

She nodded, and Luke's gaze landed on Snatcher. "Snatcher...I thought wrongly of you at first. But now I know better. You managed to bring together a broken kingdom, and made it whole again. You're a fine leader for Subcon Forest, and I wouldn't entrust it to anyone else. Take care of the kid for me, ok?"

Snatcher smiled, not an evil or heartless sneer, a genuine, promising smile, and nodded.

Luke took a deep breath, and held up the time piece. He started to move the glass into place, then stopped.

He gave his two friends a final grin.

"Hat Kid, Snatcher...I will never forget you two. You will always be welcome in Subcon Kingdom. I promise you."

He let go of the glass shard, and it clicked into place. The hourglass began to glow as the sand inside of it reformed, pooling at the bottom. It was time to go home.

_ "Farewell!" _

The sands rose to the top of the hourglass, and a bright white light engulfed Luke's vision.

And Subcon Kingdom was finally whole.

~~

Luke finally understood now. He didn't need to devote his entire life to someone who refused to change. Growing and changing were a part of human nature, and time refused to wait for those who wouldn't. He was ready to grow now that he wasn't being held back. He was ready to burn bright. He was ready to lead his people, through all the hardships they would face.

He was ready to begin the reign of King Luke.

Because everything has a past, and a future. His future was his to make.

And he was ready to create a better future.

**The End**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and there it is!! thank you all so much for reading!!!


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